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Microfiche 

Series. 


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Collection  de 
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10X 

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668 


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empreinte. 


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method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
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I 


HISTORY 


OP   THE 


DISCOVERY  AND  SETTLEMENT 


or 


THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI 


DY 


THE  THREE  GREAT  EUROPEAN  POWERS, 

SPAIN,  FRANCE,  AND  GREAT  BRITAIN, 


AND 


THE   SUBSEQUENT   OCCUPATION,  SETTLEMENT,    AND    EXTENSION 

CIVIL   GOVERNMENT   BY 

THE  UNITED  STATES, 

UNTIL  THE  YEAR  1846. 


OF 


BY 

JOHN    W.    MONETTE,    M.D. 


"  Westward  the  star  of  empif  e  takes  its 


;••  • ••.  • 


way." 


N 


TV  WO    J^0fc.UME3. 
. »    . .       I  I 


•  ••  •    -.  • 


>  •       I  •     « 


•   VOtM::..! 


HARPER    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS. 

82    CLIFF    STREET,   NEW   YORK. 
18  4  6. 


40539 


Knteivtl,  iicc'orcliiig  to  Act  of  C'ongress.  in  the  yciir  isid, 

By  Hari'kr  &  Crotiikrs, 

In  tlio  <;'li'ik's  Oflice  of  the  Soutlierii  Disitrirt  of  New  Voil. 


i^-rM 


PREFACE. 


Tin;  records  of  the  first  European  colonics  in  the  Valley  oi" 
the  Mississippi  are  distributed  sparsely  throu,u;h  the  archives 
of  foreign  ij^overnments,  and  are  to  be  found  published  only  in 
fragments  and  hasty  sketches,  interspersed  through  miscella- 
neous works  and  periodicals,  so  that  a  connected  and  concise 
account  of  their  rise  and  progress  is  not  accessible  to  those 
who  desire  to  trace  their  history.  In  like  manner,  the  early 
records  of  the  Anglo-American  settlements  west  of  the  Alle- 
ghany Mountains,  and  their  extension  over  the  Valley  of  the 
Mississippi,  are  concealed  chiefly  among  the  archives  of  the 
several  states  and  territories,  or  among  the  voluminous  docu- 
ments of  the  Federal  government,  thus  i)lacing  any  connected 
account  of  these  infant  colonies  equally  beyond  the  reach  of 
common  research.  Other  fragments,  pertaining  to  the  early 
history  of  the  western  settlements,  are  enveloped  in  private  me- 
moirs, narratives  of  individual  observers  loosely  compiled,  and 
meriting  but  slender  claims  to  the  confidence  of  the  discern- 
ing  reader. 

Hence  that  portion  of  the  reading  public  who  are  desirous 
of  tracing  the  true  history  of  past  events  in  the  rise  and  prog- 
ress of  the  new  states  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  free 
from  the  glosses  and  episodes  of  visionary  writers,  are  ex- 
cluded from  any  concise  and  connected  history  of  the  whole 
West,  which  disc,  .s^^^s  correctly  the  progressive  changes,  and 
notes  the  order  in  ti.e  chain  of  events,  in  their  advance  from 
isolated,  feeble  frontier  colonies,  to  populous,  wealthy,  and  en- 
lightened states. 

To  supply  this  desideratum,  nnd.  to  present  a  concise  and 
comprehensive  detail,  a  complete  but  condensed  narrative  of 
American  colonization  west  of  the  AUeghanies  is  the  object 
of  the  present  work.  In  this  undertaking,  the  author  has  en- 
deavored to  connect  the  history  of  the  French  and  Spanish 
colonies,  which  have  had  their  important  agency  in  the  desti- 
ny of  the  American  Republic,  with  those  of  the  Anglo-Ameri- 
cans in  their  advance  upon  the  tributaries  of  the  Ohio  River. 


IV 


PREFACE. 


The  blending  of  these  three  great  branches  of  European  emi- 
gration in  North  America  has  resulted  in  the  formation  of  a 
great  and  powerful  RepubUc,  the  wonder,  if  wot  the  admira- 
tion, of  the  civihzed  worhi,  teeming  with  an  enterprising  and 
ever-active  population,  proud  of  their  origin  from  the  three 
great  nations  that  have  successively  held  dominion  in  the 
Western  World. 

The  advance  of  the  Anglo-American  population  into  the 
Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  its  union  with  Gallic  and  Spanish 
colonies,  the  concurrent  extension  of  Republican  government 
over  the  subjects  of  absolute  monarchies,  and  its  benign  influ- 
ence upon  the  moral  character  and  enlightened  enterprise  of 
mankind,  aflbrd  a  subject  worthy  the  profound  attention  of  the 
philosopher  and  the  statesman.  They  present  a  new  phenom- 
enon in  the  science  of  human  government,  as  to  the  develop- 
ment of  human  capabilities,  when  untrammeled  by  arbitrary 
power,  and  left  free  to  the  exercise  of  its  own  energies,  under 
the  fostering  care  of  a  free  and  liberal  system  of  government. 
They  exhibit  the  speedy  and  progressive  conversion  of  a  sav- 
age wilderness  into  a  populous  and  highly-civilized  country, 
inhabited  by  a  people  who  have  made  all  nature  tributary  to 
their  aggrandizement  as  a  nation,  and  in  the  promotion  of  do- 
mestic independence  and  social  wealth,  by  the  extension  of 
navigation  and  commerce,  and  by  the  perfection  of  arts  and 
sciences  throughout  the  magnificent  regions  of  central  North 
America. 

Such  a  result,  heretofore,  has  been  the  work  of  many  ages ; 
and  hence  the  early  records  of  the  rise  and  progress  of  most 
nations  known  to  history  have  been  lost  in  the  uncertain  mazes 
of  tradition,  until  arms  and  commerce,  arts  and  sciences,  after 
the  lapse  of  centuries,  had  given  them  renown  and  history. 
It  has  been  left  to  the  West  to  furnish  the  history  of  a  new  Re- 
public, to  present  to  the  world  the  novel  spectacle  of  a  great 
nation  formed  by  people  coming  from  various  portions  of  the 
globe,  diflfering  in  manners,  language,  politics,  and  religion,  and 
settling  down  quietly  together,  forming  governments,  constitu- 
tions, and  laws,  without  bloodshed,  violence,  conquest,  or  inva- 
sion, and  coalescing  into  one  uniform,  harmonious,  and  pros- 
perous people.  Never  was  there  an  experiment  of  greater 
moral  grandeur,  a  more  sublime  spectacle  of  the  harmonious 
development  of  the  moral  and  political  energies  of  a  people 


PREFACE. 


;an  emi- 
ion  of  a 
ndinira- 
sing  niul 
lie  three 
I  in  the 

into  the 
Spanish 
eminent 
gn  influ- 
•prise  of 
m  of  the 
phenom- 
develop- 
irbitrary 
js,  under 
ernment. 
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country, 
)utary  to 
n  of  do- 
nsion  of 
arts  and 
North 

ly  ages ; 
of  most 

mazes 

es,  after 

listory. 

lew  Re- 

a  great 

of  the 
ion,  and 
onstitu- 
3r  inva- 
pros- 
greater 
nonious 

people 


left  free  to  the  unrestrained  operation  of  enlightened  public 
opinion,  the  great  regulator  of  their  forms  of  government,  laws, 
and  religion. 

The  history  of  the  early  pioneers  of  the  West  is  full  of  thrill- 
ing interest  and  incident  connected  with  their  struggles  for  the 
occupancy  of  this  great  and  fertile  region,  which  they  have 
left  as  a  rich  inheritance  to  their  posterity.  The  only  requital 
they  ask  at  our  hands  is  the  gratitude  with  which  their  names 
ami  their  virtues  are  cherished  by  their  posterity,  and  the  fidel- 
ity with  which  they  are  transmitted,  as  models  of  enterprise 
and  perseverance,  to  future  ages. 

The  last  participants  in  the  great  drama  of  western  civiliza- 
tion will  soon  have  passed  from  the  stage  of  action ;  and  the  only 
voice  heard  in  their  praise,  the  only  tribute  of  gratitude  and  ad- 
miration for  their  merits,  will  be  the  impartial  records  of  his- 
tory, which  should  embalm  their  deeds  of  valor,  their  patient 
endurance,  and  their  active  virtues  in  the  grateful  remem- 
brance of  posterity. 

The  general  tenor  of  this  history  is  to  trace  the  gradual  and 
steady  advance  of  the  European  colonies  and  settlements  by 
their  various  routes  into  the  central  part  of  North  America,  and 
the  progressive  extension  of  the  Anglo-American  population 
and  Republican  government  throughout  the  great  Valley  of  the 
Mississippi  and  the  southwest ;  to  illustrate  the  progressive 
changes,  and  the  rapid  advance  of  population  and  civil  govern- 
ment, from  the  rude  and  half-civilized  pioneer  up  to  flourishing 
cities  and  powerful  states,  extending  over  regions  which  a  few 
years  previou3ly  had  been  savage  solitudes. 

The  plan  of  the  work  is  simple,  and  grows  out  of  the  ordei 
in  which  the  different  colonies  advanced  in  the  occupation  of 
the  regions  now  comprised  in  the  United  States. 

The  Spaniards  were  the  first  exploring  pioneers  in  the  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  their  early  explorations  and  settlements 
furnish  the  subject  of  the  First  Book,  or  "  Early  Spanish  Ex- 
plorations." 

The  French  were  the  first  peaceful  explorers  and  permanent 
colonists  who  occupied  and  settled  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  subsequent  to  the  hostile  explorations  of  the  Spaniards. 
The  French  colonies  and  explorations  therefore  furnish  the  sub- 
ject of  the  Second  Book,  or  "  France  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi." 


▼l  PREFACE. 

Gi'c.'it  Britain,  the  jmlous  rival  f)t' France*  next  cxtcndod  her 
colonies  into  the  western  conntry,  encroaching  ii|K)n  the  dis- 
coveries iU'A  |)ossessi<tns  ot"  France,  until  linally,  hy  force  of 
arms,  she  expelled  the  French  power  from  ('anada  and  the 
Mississippi,  and  appro[)riatod  to  her  own  use  the  whole  eastern 
hairot*  the  valley,  including  the  Fioridas. 

The  progress  of  her  colonies  west  of  the  Alloghanies.  her 
fierce  contests  with  the  French  and  their  savage  allies,  and  her 
subsequent  occupancy  of  the  country,  furnish  the  subjects  of  the 
Third  Book,  or  "  Great  Britain  in  the  Valley." 

At  the  dismemberment  of  Louisiana  in  170.1,  while  Great 
Britain  had  secured  the  eastern  portion  of  the  province,  except 
the  Island  of  New  Orleans,  Spain  had  acquired  all  the  western 
portion,  including  that  island.  Thus  was  Louisiana  divided  be- 
tween Spain  and  Great  Britain.  Spain  held  dominion  over  the 
western  portion  of  Louisiana  and  the  Island  of  New  Orleans, 
together  with  the  Fioridas,  subsequent  to  1781,  until  the  close 
of  the  year  1803,  when  the  Spanish  dominion  ceased  in  Loui- 
siana. The  acquisition,  the  occupancy,  and  the  exercise  of 
Spanish  authority  over  this  extensive  province,  until  the  final 
termination  of  the  Spanish  dominion  on  the  Mississippi,  furnish 
the  subjects  of  the  Fourth  Book,  or  "  Spain  in  the  Valley." 

Meantime,  the  "  United  States"  on  the  Atlantic  coast  hav- 
ing declared  their  independence,  which  was  recognized  by 
Great  Britain  at  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  succeeded 
to  the  territory  claimed  by  Great  Britain  east  of  the  Mississip- 
pi, as  far  south  as  the  proper  limits  of  Florida.  The  United 
States  claimed  dominion,  and  continued  to  extend  civil  juris- 
diction in  the  formation  of  new  states  west  of  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,  gradually  displacing  the  native  savages  from  the 
country  east  of  the  Mississippi,  and  finally,  by  treaty  negotia- 
tions, annexed  all  the  Spanish  provinces  east  and  west  of  the 
Mississippi,  as  far  as  the  Rio  del  Norte  of  Mexico. 

The  extension  of  settlements,  the  establishment  of  civil  gov- 
ernment, the  increase  of  population,  the  wars  and  treaties  with 
the  native  tribes,  the  acquisition  of  territory  and  the  extension 
of  dominion,  the  progress  of  agriculture,  manufactures,  trade, 
and  commerce,  aided  by  the  potent  influence  of  steam  power, 
constitute  the  subjects  comprised  in  the  Fifth  Book,  or,  "  The 
United  States  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi." 

Such  is  the  general  outline  of  the  work  which  is  now  pre- 


I'UEr.ACK. 


tended  her 
L)ii  the  (lis- 
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la  and  tho 
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i.'inies.  her 
cs,  nnd  her 
jects  of  the 


VII 


M...t.d  to  ,1,.  An.ori.an  ,,.,l,lic.     Tor  i,s  ..ompl.tion  an.l  „o,. 
Section,  so  far  as  the  nature  and  extent  of  the  i,l-in  uil      l     . 

-Iitsiiuthad.ulhereneeto.ruthandaJn;t     ;^    :l    :: 
^pared  neither  labor  nor  expense,  an.l  he  throws  h  n  , 

the  .enen.us  approbation  of  the  An>eri..an  peopN,  li.,    „.  i 
;ys;.n.a.^ar.n,en.n,  of  this  portion  or  Ihe^ns.:^ 


hile  Great 
ice,  except 
le  western 
hvided  be- 
n  over  the 
V  Orleans, 
I  the  close 
d  in  Loui- 
xercise  of 
1  the  final 
pi,  furnish 
Hey." 
oast  hav- 
piized  by 
lucceeded 
Mississip. 
le  United 
ivil  juris- 
Uleghany 
from  the 
'  negotia- 
!St  of  the 

;ivil  gov- 
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extension 
2s,  trade, 
a  power, 
)r,  •'  The 


low 


pre- 


i 


# 


CONTENTS  OF  VOL.  I. 


I 


M 


B  O  O  K  I. 

EARLY  EXPLORATIONS  OF  THE  SPANIARDS  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF 

THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

CHAPTER  I. 

FIRST  SPANISH  DISCOVERIES  IN  FLORIDA. A.D.  1512  TO  1538. 

Argument. — Tho  former  undefined  Extent  of  Florida. — Spirit  of  Enterprise  nnd  Dis- 
covery awakened  in  Europe  by  Spanish  Conquests  in  the  West  Indies,  Mexico,  and 
Peru. — The  romantic  and  unfortiinato  Expedition  of  Ponce  de  Leon  into  East  Flor- 
ida.— The  Expedition  and  Disasters  of  Vasquez  de  Ayllou ;  his  Avarice,  Cruelty,  and 
Death. — The  disastrous  Expedition  of  Pamphilo  do  Narvaez. — Preparations  for  the 
great  and  chivalrous  Expedition,  under  Hernando  do  Soto,  for  tho  Conquest  of  Flor- 
ida.— The  Nature  and  Extent  of  this  Euterpriso. — Do  Soto's  commanding  Person 
and  Iiifluence. — Tho  Expedition  sails  from  Spain  for  the  West  Indies. — Other  Ar- 
rangements and  Preparations  completed. — The  Expedition  ^ails  from  Havana,  and 
arrives  at  the  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo  late  in  May,  1539,  A.D. — A  Synopsis  of  the 
Marches,  Disasters,  and  Fate  of  the  Expedition Pago  1 

CHAPTER  n. 

INVASION  OF  FLORIDA  BY  HERNANDO  DE  SOTO. A.D.  1539  TO  1540. 

Arffvment. — Tho  Spanish  Expedition  at  tho  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo. — Disasters  com- 
mence.— De  Soto  invades  the  Territory  of  Hirhihigua. — Invades  the  Territories  of 
Acucra ;  of  Ocali ;  of  Vitachuco.  —  Invades  Osachile  ;  the  Caci(iue's  Castle  upon 
a  fortified  Mound. — Invasion  of  Appalacho. — The  Expedition  winters  in  Appalache. 
— Various  Incidents  while  here. — Tho  Expedition  marches  in  the  Spring  toward 
Western  Georgia. — Invasion  of  tho  Territories  of  Copafi. — Capture  of  the  Cacique. 
— His  Person  and  Character. — His  miraculous  Escape. — Invasion  of  the  Territory  of 
Cofachiqui. — Do  Soto's  Disappointment  at  the  Poverty  of  tho  Natives. — Captures  a 
dueen  Regent. — Detains  her  as  a  Hostage,  and  carries  her  Westward  in  his  Alarch. 
— She  efiects  her  Escape  near  the  eastern  Limits  of  tho  Cherokee  Country. — The  Ex- 
pedition upon  tho  Sourccsof  the  Chattahoochy  River. — Arrives  on  the  head  Waters 
of  the  Coosa  River 16 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE    SPANISH    EXPEDITION    EAST    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. A.D.    1540 

TO    1541. 

Argument. — De  Soto  marches  down  the  Coosa  River. — The  King,  or  Cacique,  of  Cosa. 
— De  Soto  enters  the  Territory  of  Tnscaluza.  —  Noble  Person  and  lofty  Bearing  of 
Tuscaluza.— He  Is  inveigled  into  De  Soto's  Train. — The  Army  marches  through  tho 
Dominions  of  Tuscaluza. — The  captive  King  is  impatient  and  indignant  at  his  De- 
tention.— Resolves  to  secure  his  Liberty  or  die.  —  Reaches  Mauvile  with  the  Army. 
—Do  Soto  apprehends  Danger  from  the  Native  Warriors. — Tho  severe  and  disas- 
trous Battle  of  Mauvile.  —  Indian  Courage  and  Desperation. — Deplorable  Condition 
of  the  Spanish  Army  after  the  Battle.— De  Soto  resolves  to  advance  to  the  North- 


■JIIJll,/!"',     I    V^  »'^^" 


^m 


I  CONTENTS. 

west. — Crosses  the  Tonibigby  River  in  the  Fnce  of  an  Indian  Army.— Passes  the  Head 
Waters  of  Pearl  River.  —  Enters  tlie  Chickasii  Country.  —  Takes  Possession  of  a 
large  Indian  Town  for  his  Winter-(iuarters. — The  great  Battle  and  Conflagration  of 
Cliicasii. — Great  Losses  of  the  Spaniards. — The  Army  marches  Westward  to  Cliica- 
(jilla,  where  they  spend  the  remainder  of  the  Winter. — They  march  Northwest  to  Al- 
ibamo. — Severe  Uattle  of  Ahbamo. — They  approach  the  Missis8i|ipi,  or  llio  Grande. 
— Preparations  for  crossing  the  great  River. — Indian  Hostilities  and  Opposition  to 
their  crossing. — The  Array  at  length  reach  the  western  Side  of  the  Rio  Grande. — 
The  probable  Crossing-placo Page  33 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  SPANISH    EXPEDITION  WEST  OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. A.D.   1541 

TO  1543. 

Argument. — De  Soto  arrives  upon  the  Banks  of  White  River. — Incidents  and  Religious 
Ceremonies. — Do  Soto  joins  an  Indian  King  in  a  hostile  Expedition. — Marches  with 
him  Northeast  to  the  Mississippi,  near  Helena. — Arrives  at  the  Town  of  Capahii. — 
Present  Remains  of  Capahu. — He  returns  to  White  River,  and  thence  resumes  his 
March  to  the  West. — Winters  high  up  the  Arkansas  in  a  cold  Latitude. — Difficulties 
and  Disasters  there. — Returns  to  the  Mississippi  in  the  Spring. — Disasters  begin  to 
multiply. — Ho  determines  to  leave  the  Country  by  descending  the  River. — New  Hos- 
tilities by  the  Natives. — Difficulties  increase,  and  Perplexities  prey  upon  the  iron 
Soul  of  De  Soto. — He  sickens  and  dies. — Affectuig  Scene  before  his  Death. — Ho  is 
finally  deposited  in  the  Mississippi,  near  the  Mouth  of  the  Arkansas. — His  Eulogium. — 
Louis  de  Moscoso  succeeds  to  the  Command. — He  marches  Westward  in  search  of  the 
Mexican  Settlements. — His  fruitless  Search. — Returns  to  the  Mississippi. — Spends 
the  Winter  and  Spring  in  Preparations  for  a  Departure  down  the  River. — Commences 
building  Brigantines  for  descending  the  River. — He  is  greatly  annoyed  by  hostile  In- 
dians.— Perilous  Descent  of  the  River  in  Boats  and  Brigantines. — Dangerous  Voyage 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. — The  Rcuuiaut  of  the  Expedition  reach  the  Spanish  Settle- 
ments of  Mexico. — Reflections 47 


I 


li 


CHAPTER  V. 

EARLY   EXTENT   AND  SETTLEMENTS,  WITH   THE  SUBSEaUENT    BOUN- 
DARIES AND  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  FLORIDA. A.D.   1544  TO   1845. 

Argument. — lilxtent  of  Florida  in  15G0. — Spanish  Missions  and  Settlements. — Ribault's 
French  Colony  in  1562. — Its  Location  on  the  Combahee  River. — Destmction  of  the 
Colony. — Laudonnier's  French  Colony  in  1564. — "Fort  Carolana''  built  on  the  St 
Mary's.— Destitute  Condition  of  this  Colony. — Timely  Relief  by  Ribault. — Mclendcz  is 
Adelantadoof  Florida  in  1565. — He  exterminates  the  French  Colony. — St.  Augustine 
founded. — Degourges  ravages  the  Spanish  Colony  and  captures  the  Forts. — Jesuit 
Missionaries  introduced  by  Melcndez. — Missions  established  in  1584. — St.  Augustine 
plundered  by  Sir  Francis  DraliO. — First  Attempts  at  EngUsh  Settlement,  in  1585  and 
1608. — English  Colony  of  Virginia. — Carolina  granted  to  Lord  Clarendon  and  others. — 
St.  Augustine  plundered  in  1665  by  Captain  Davis,  an  English  Pirate. — English  Set- 
tlement at  "  Charlestown,"  in  1679. — French  Colonists  an-ivo  in  Carolina,  1785-6. — 
Restricted  Limits  of  Florida. — Spanish  Settlements  invoded  by  the  Engli.sh  from 
Carolina. — Partisan  Warfare  conthmod. — Pensacola  settled  in  1696. — Boundary  be- 
tween Florida  and  Louisiana. — English  Boundaries  of  Florida  in  1764. — English  Set- 
tlements in  Florida. — TumbuU's  Colony  of  New  Smyrna. — His  inhuman  Tyranny. — 
Wretched  Condition,  and  subsequent  Liberation  of  his  white  Slaves. — English  Ag- 
riculture in  Florida. — Florida  rctroceded  to  Spain  in  1783. — Extent  of  Florida 
claimed  by  Spain. — Extent  claimed  by  the  United  States. — Claim  of  United  States 
under  the  Purchase  of  Louisiana. — Baton  Rouge  District  annexed  to  the  State  of 
Louisiana. — Fort  Charlotte  and  Mobile  District  surrendered  in  1813. — Florida  re- 


iM 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


sscs  tho  Head 
)ssussiori  of  a 
iiiflagration  of 
i^ard  to  Chicn- 
•tliwost  to  AI- 
■  Kio  Grande. 
Opposition  to 
i-io  Grande. — 
.  Page  3a 


\.D.  1541 


nd  Relig-iuus 
larches  witli 
jf  Capahii. — 
resumes  his 
— DilHcuIties 
ers  begin  to 
— New  Hos- 
3on  the  iron 
lath.— Ho  is 
Eulogium. — 
search  of  the 
pi. — Spends 
Conjmenccs 
y  hostile  In- 
dus Voyage 
pish  Settle- 
.    47 


T   BOUN- 

845. 

Kibault's 
Hon  of  tho 
•n  tlic  St 

t'udcz  is 

Vn.gustino 

Jesuit 

umistino 

158.5  and 

others. — 

hsh  Set- 
8d-G.— 

sh  from 
dary  be- 
lish  Set- 

anny. — 
lish  Ag- 

Florida 
I  States 

tato  of 

ida  re- 


strirti'd  to  tlic  Pcrdido  on  tho  West. — Revolt  and  Orcu])anf'y  of  Kasl  Florida  by 
"  I'atridts"  in  181-.  —  Spain  i'ails  to  preserve  the  iVeutridity  of  Florida  during  the 
War  with  Great  Uritain. — VVoodiiine's  Operations  among  the  Seniinoles  of  Florida 
;ifti'r  till!  War. —  He  builds  a  Nei,To  Fort  on  tlio  Appnlachicola. — Neiu'of.s,  Arnis, 
Mmiitions,  and  Military  Stores  fin-nisbod  from  the  IJritish  Fleet. — The  I'atriots  of 
■•^outli  America  again  occupy  Amelia  Island  in  1817.  —  Tho  Seniinolo  War  com- 
la.'uces. — General  Jackson  prosecutes  it  successfully. —  Captures  St.  Mirk's. — Ar- 
liuthuot  and  Ambrister  condemned  and  executeil. — Their  righteous  Sentence  and 
deserved  Fate. — Jackson  marches  tol'ensacola  and  exi)ela  the  perlidious  Spaniards. — 
He  retires  to  private  Life. — His  Traits  of  Character. — Florida  ceded  to  the  United 
States  ia  1310. — Terms  of  Cession. — Gener.il  Jackson  is  first  American  (iovernor, 
civil  and  military,  of  the  Province. — Collision  with  Governor  Calleavn. — The  first 
(jrade  of  Territorial  Govenauent  organized  in  IByiH. — Indians  renioveil  from  Middle 
Florida  in  M-H. — The  second  Grade  organized  in  13i!5.—  Advance  of  white  Popula- 
tion until  1835. — HostilitiesbytbeMickasukielnilians. — Military  Movements  an<l  Op- 
erations.— HoiTible  Massacre  of  Major  Dade's  Detachment. — Indian  Murders  at 
Fort  King. — Cunnnencement  of  the  "  Florida  War." — Gradual  Removal  of  the  Senii- 
noles West  of  the  Mississippi. — Increase  of  white  Population  until  1841. — State  Con- 
stitution formed. — The  State  of  Florida  admitted  into  the  Union  in  184  J      .  Page  65 


-■       BOOK    II. 

FRANCE  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPL 

CHAPTER  I. 

ADVANCE   OF   THE    FRENCH    Ul'ON   THE   ST.   liAWRENCE,   AND    DISCOV- 
ERY   OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. A.I).   1008  TO   1073. 

Ar^uwru/. — First  Attempt  of  Frencli  Colonization  in  Canada. — First  successful  Settle- 
ment by  Champlain  in  1G08. — His  Exidorations  on  the  St.  Lawrence  and  Lakes. — 
Iwlian  Alliances  against  the  Irociueis. — Advance  of  Catholic  Missionaries. — Hostili- 
ties of  the  Iroquois. — Fathers  Drebeuf  and  Daniel  visit  Sault  St.  Mary  in  1(!;)4. — 
Character  of  Catholic  Missionaries  in  Canada.— Sutt'erings  of  Ilaymbault  among  the 
Iroijuois  in  lfi42. — Of  Father  Bressaiii  in  l(i4;!. — The  Missionaries  sustain  the  Colo- 
nies.— Death  of  Father  Jouges  among  the  Irocjuois  in  1640.— Others  sutler  Martyr- 
dom in  the  same  Field. — Jesuits  and  Monks  flock  to  Canada  in  IC.'iO  for  the  Mission- 
ary Field.— Le  Moyne  among  tho  Mohawks  in  l(io6. — Cbaumonot  and  Dablon  among 
the  Onondagas.— Kene  Mcsnard  among  the  Cajiigas. — Missionaries  killed  and  ex- 
pelled by  tho  Iroquois.-— Montreal  a  Bishop's  See  in  1050,— Mesnard  rejiairs  to 
St.  Mary's  and  Green  Bay.— Dies  in  the  Forest  alone.— Canada  a  Royal  Province 
in  1005.- Military  Protection  of  Settlements. — Father  AUouez  among  tho  Chippe- 
was  at  St.  Mary's.— Learns  the  Exi.stencc  of  the  Mississippi  in  1C07. — Dablon  and 
Marquette  repair  to  St.  Maiy's  in  1608.— Military  Outposts  of  New  France  in  1670. 
—Missions  in  the  Far  West. — Marquette  conceives  the  Design  of  discovering  the 
Mississippi.— Plans  his  Voyage  of  Discovery  in  1672.— M.  Talon  patronizes  the  Enter- 
prise.— Marquette  and  Jolietconduct  the  Exploration  in  1673. — They  proceed  by  Way 
of  Green  Bay  and  Fox  River  to  tho  Wisconsin. — Discovery  of  the  Misgissip])i,  June 
17th,  1673.— Explore  the  Great  River  1100  Miles.— They  return  by  the  Illinois  River 
to  Chicago  Creek. — Marquette  returns  to  his  Mission,  and  Joliet  to  duebec. — Joy  in 
Canada  at  the  Discovery. — Native  Tribes  known  to  the  early  Explorers  of  Illinois  and 
Louisiana:  Algonquin  Tribes ;  Shawanesa  ;  Miamis  ;  Illinois;  Potawatamies  ;  Otta- 
vviis ;  Menomonies,  Chippewas  ;  Sioux  ;  Sauks  and  Foxes  ;  Chickasns  ;  Natchez  ; 
Choctas 10 


xii 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  II. 

EXPLORATION  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI   RIVER   BY   LA   SALLE  I    HIS   COL- 
ONY   ON    THE    COLORADO. A.D.   1673  TO  1696. 

Argument. — Character  and  Enterprise  of  La  Salle.— His  Ambition  to  complete  the  Ex- 
ploration of  the  Mississippi. — His  Flans  approved  by  M.  Talon,  Intendant  of  New 
France. — La  Salle  sails  for  Europe. — Receives  the  King's  Patronage. — Returns  to 
Canada. — Repairs  to  Fort  Frontenac  and  the  Western  Lakes  in  1678. — Winters  on 
the  Niagara,  and  builds  the  Griffon  in  1679. — Proceeds  to  Green  Bay  and  freights  the 
Griffon. — Visits  the  Miamis  on  St.  Joseph's  River. — Loss  of  the  Griffon  and  Cargo. — 
Builds  Fort  Miami  in  1680. — Builds  Fort  Creve  Cosur. — DifiBculties  with  Indians. — 
Mutiny  among  his  Men. — Mutiny  quelled  and  Indians  reconciled. — Father  Henne- 
pin sent  to  explore  the  Mississippi.  —  La  Salle  returns  to  Fort  Frontenac.  —  Rock 
Fort  built  on  the  Illinois. — Extent  of  Hennepin's  Explorations  in  1681. — Subsequent- 
ly he  explores  the  Mississippi  as  low  as  the  Arkansas. — La  Salle  devotes  his  whole 
Energy  to  retrieve  his  Fortune.  —  Prepares  for  a  final  Exploration  of  the  River  to 
the  Sea. — He  enters  the  Mississippi,  February  2, 1682. — He  explores  it  to  the  Sea, 
and  visits  numerous  Tribes  of  Indians. — Takes  formal  Possession  of  Lower  Louisi- 
ana.— Returns  to  Canada. — Sails  to  Europe  in  October,  1782. — In  Paris,  organizes  a 
Colony  for  the  Mississippi. — Sails  from  Rochelle  with  his  Colony,  July  24,  1684. — 
Character  and  Numbers  of  the  Colony.  —  Tedious  and  disastrous  Voyage. —  Sails 
West  of  the  Mississippi,  and  is  compelled  to  land  in  Western  Texas. — Unavailing 
Searches  for  the  Mississippi. — Builds  "  Fort  St.  Louis"  on  die  Colorado,  and  takes 
formal  Possession  of  Texas  in  1685.— Deplorable  Condition  of  the  Colony.— La  Salle 
finally  determines  to  reach  the  HHnois  and  Canada  by  Land,  in  1687. — Assassinated 
near  the  Trinity  River. — The  Remainder  of  the  Colony  are  dispersed,  and  some 
reach  the  Illinois.— Spaniards  search  for  the  French  Colony  in  vain,  in  1689. — Illinoig 
Country  occupied  by  French  after  La  SaUe's  Departure.— Wars  in  Canada  with  the 
Iroquois  and  English.— The  Colonization  of  Lower  Louisiana  deferred  until  the  Year 
1698 Page  131 

CHAPTER  III. 

ADVANCE  OF  THE  FRENCH  SETTLEMENTS  FROM  CANADA  UPON  THE 
UPPER  MISSISSIPPI  AND  OHIO  RIVE&S,  TO  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE 
FRENCH  ViTAR. A.D.    1696  TO  1764. 

Argument. — Settlements  near  the  Missions,  and  La  Salle's  Trading-posts  on  the  Illi- 
nois.— At  Peoria.— Kaskaskia.— Missionaries  visit  the  Lower  Mississippi.— Detroit 
settled  in  1701,  by  La  Motte  Cadillac.  — Peace  with  the  Iroquois  and  Western 
Tribes.— English  Jealousy.— Hostile  Foxes  humbled  in  1713.— Settlements  on  the 
Upper  Mississippi  from  1712  to  1720.— Accession  of  Emigrants  from  Canada  and  Lou- 
isiana.—Renault  and  two  hundred  Miners  arrive. — Trade  between  the  Illinois  and 
Mobile. — Agriculture  in  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  Countries.— Ohio  River  unexplor- 
ed.—  Fort  Chartres  built  in  1721. — Villages  in  its  Vicinity.— Jesuits'  College  at 
Kaskaskia. — Advance  of  the  French  South  of  the  Niagara  River. — On  Ontario  and 
Champlain. — Fort  Niagara  built  in  1726.— Crown  Point  in  1727^— Ticonderoga  in 

1731. — Tuscarawas  join  the  Five  Nations. — Post  St.  Vincent's  erected  in  1735. 

Presque  Isle  in  174a — Agriculture  of  the  Wabash  in  1746. — English  Jealousy. — Villa- 
ges of  the  Illinois  Country  in  1751. — Population  of  Kaskaskia. — French  advance  to  the 
Head  Waters  of  the  Alleghany  River  in  1753. — Forts  Le  Beuf,  Venango,  Sandusky. 
— Ohio  Company  of  Virginia. — Gist  visits  the  Ohio  Region  as  Agent  of  the  Company 
in  1753. — English  Colonies  remonstrate  against  the  Advance  of  the  French. — Major 
Washington  Commissioner  to  Le  Beuf. — His  Mission  unsuccessful. — Gk>vemoi'  Din- 
widdle rouses  the  People  of  Virginia  to  resist  the  French  on  the  Ohio. — Captain 
Trent  advances  to  the  Ohio  iu  1754. — Lieutenant  Ward's  Detachment  captured  by 


CONTENTS. 


xiii 


the  French. — Fort  Daqaesno  erected  by  the  French. — Colonel  Washington  march- 
ea  a  Detachment  to  the  Muuongahela. — Captnrea  a  Detachment  under  M.  Jumonville, 
who  is  killed.— Colonel  Washington  surrenders  "Fort  Necessity"  to  the  French, 
and  retires  to  Fort  Cumberland. — French  Forbearance  and  Moderation. — Arrival  of 
General  Braddock  at  Alexandria. — Preparations  for  the  Capture  of  Fort  Duquesnc. — 
General  Braddock  marches  from  Fort  Cumberland  for  the  Ohio. — Falls  into  an  Am- 
buscade on  the  Monongahela,  and  utterly  defeated. — French  at  Duquesne  midis- 
turbed  for  two  Years. — General  Forbes,  in  1758,  advances  to  the  Ohio.— Occupies 
Fort  Duquesnc. — All  Canada  falls  under  the  British  Arms. — Franco  relinquishes 
New  Frauce  and  Louisiana,  by  the  Treaties  of  17C3  and  1763,  to  Spain  and  Great 
Britain Pago  157 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  MANNERS  AND  CUSTOMS  OF  THE    EARLY  FRENCH    SETTLERS  IN 
THE    ILLINOIS    COUNTRY. A.D.   1700   TO    1780. 

Argument. — Extent  of  the  "  Illinois  Country."— Conciliatory  Policy  of  the  French  to- 
ward the  Indian  Tribes. — Their  amicable  Intercourse  with  the  Natives. — Picture  of 
primitive  Happiness  enjoyed  by  the  Illinois  French. — Their  plain  and  homely  Houses 
and  rural  Villages. — "  Common  Field,"  and  Mode  and  Distribution  of  Labor. — Family 
Interests  in  tlie  same. — "  Commons,"  and  its  Uses. — Patriarchal  Harmony  and  Con- 
tentment of  these  Communities. — Moral  Influence  of  the  System. — Equality  and 
Happiness  of  the  People. — The  Paternal  Homestead,  and  Patriarchal  Families. — 
Costume:  Male  and  Female. — Catholic  Religion. — Equality. — Contentment. — Sab- 
bath Amusements  and  Hilarity. — Trades  and  Professions. — Idiom. — Habits  and  De- 
portment.— Domestic  Simplicity  of  Manners  and  Virtues. — The  mild  and  indulgent 
Regime  of  Spain.— Facility  of  Incorporation  with  Indian  Character. — English  Au- 
thority introduced  in  1765. — The  Jurisdiction  of  the  United  States  extended  over  them 
in  1804. — Their  Objections  to  American  Population  and  Laws  •       .        •  181 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE     FIRST     COLONIZATION     OP     LOUISIANA     UNTIL   THE     CLOSE    OP 
crozat's  monopoly. A.D.  1698  TO   1717. 

Argument. — Retrospect  of  the  Illinois  Settlements. — D'Iberville  undertakes  to  Colo- 
nize Lower  Louisiana. — Sails  with  his  Colony  from  Rochelle,  September  S'lth,  1798. — 
Leaves  the  West  Indies,  and  reaches  Florida  in  January,  1699. — Casts  anchor  at 
Isle  Dauphin. — ^Disembarks  his  Colony  on  Ship  Island. — Sets  out  to  explore  the 
Mouth  of  the  Mississippi. — Enters  that  River  on  the  2d  of  March. — ^Finds  Letter  of 
De  Tonti  to  La  Salle,  dated  1685. — Returns  by  way  of  the  Bayou  Iberville  to  Bay  of 
St.  Louis. — Builds  Fort  Biloxi,  May  2d. — Sails  for  France. — English  Attempts  to 
pre-occupy  Louisiana. — The  British  King  bribes  Hennepin  to  lie. — British  Colony 
arrives  in  the  Mississippi. — Condition  of  the  Colony  at  Biloxi. — Bienville  superin- 
tends the  Colony  as  Governor. — Explores  the  Channel  of  the  Mississippi. — Iberville 
returns  with  another  Colony. — Builds  a  Fort  on  the  Bank  of  the  River. — Ascends 
the  River  as  far  as  the  Natchez  Tribe. — Selects  a  Site  for  Fort  Rosalie. — The  Natch- 
ez Indians. — Their  Customs  and  Religions  Ceremonies. — Interview  with  the  "Great 
Sun."— Boundary  between  Louisiana  and  Florida  compromised. — The  Colony  at  Bi- 
loxi reduced  by  Sickness  and  Death. — Exploring  Parties. — Unrivaled  Water  Com- 
munications.— Death  of  SauvoUe,  Commandant. — Iberville  retires  to  France. — His 
Death  in  1706. — Extravagant  Mining  Credulity  continues. — Explorations  for  Mines. — 
Feeble  Condition  of  the  Colony  from  1704  to  1710. — Louisiana  made  Independent 
of  Canada. — Bienville  Governor-general. — Banks  of  the  Mississippi  neglected. — Cro- 
zat's Monopoly  granted,  1712. — Extent  of  Louisiana  defined  in  his  Grant.— Popula- 
tion  of  the  Colony  in  1713. — Crozat's  Enterprise,  Zeal,  and  Plans  of  Trade. — He  is 


XIV 


CONTENTS. 


excluded  from  Trade  with  Florida  and  Mexico.— Settlcmenta  extend.— Natcliitoclies 
on  lied  River  settled.— Traditifj-posts  established. — Uisappoiiitmeiit  and  Failure  of 
his  Plans. — Expenditures  of  Crozat  up  to  1716.— Fort  Rosalie  built  in  171(j.— The 
new  Governor,  L'Epinai,  arrives  with  Troops.— Crozat  surrenders  his  Charter  in 
1717. — Condition  of  the  Colony  at  his  Surrender Page  10,". 

CHAPTER  VI. 

LOUISIANA    UNDER  THE  '*  WESTERN   COMI'ANy"  UNTIL  THE   FAILURE 

OF   law's    "MISSISSIPPI    SCHEME." A.D.   1717  TO   1722. 

Argument. — Enthusiasm  in  France  for  colonizing  the  Mississippi. — The  Western  Com- 
pany succeeds  to  the  Monopoly  of  Louisiana. — Charter  of  the  Company. — Its  Privi- 
leges, Powers,  and  Term  of  Existence. — Extravagant  Expectations  of  the  Company. 
— AiTival  of  the  Company's  Officers,  Troops,  and  some  Colonists  at  Mobile. — Bienville 
appointed  Governor. — He  desires  to  extend  Settlements  upon  the  Mississippi. — Se- 
lects tlie  Site  of  New  Orleans. — Establishes  a  Military  Post  on  it. — Company  refuse 
to  leave  Mobile  as  Headfjuarters. — Mining  Delusion  excludes  Agriculture. — Exten- 
sive Mining  Arrangements  in  1719. — Bienville's  Agricultural  Views  embraced  by  the 
Company. — Dependent  Condition  of  Louisiana. — Several  large  and  small  Colonies 
from  France  arrive. — The  Spaniards  establish  Settlements  and  "  Missions"  east  of  the 
Rio  del  Norte. — La  Har])e  maintains  his  Post  near  Natchitoches. — Spanish  Encroach- 
ments.— Correspondence  of  the  Spanish  Commandant,  De  la  Come,  with  La  Harpe, 
in  1719. — Negro  .Slavery  introduced  into  Louisiana  by  the  Western  Company. — Dif- 
ferent early  Importations  from  Guinea. — Value  of  Slaves. — Sources  from  which  die 
African  Slave-trade  is  supplied. — Changes  in  the  Government  of  Louisiana  in  1719. — 
Superior  Council  organized.  —  Headquarters  removed  to  Biloxi. —  Emigrants  and 
Troop%  an'ive  in  1720. — War  with  Spain. — Operations  at  Mobile  and  Pcnsacola. — 
The  latter  captured  and  burned  by  the  French. — Spanish  Incursions  from  Santa  Fe 
to  the  Missouri  and  Arkansas. — Fort  Orleans  built  on  the  Missouri. — Plan  of  Defense 
fjr  the  Upper  Mississippi. — Lesueur  occupies  a  Post  on  the  St.  Peter's. — Fort  Char- 
tres  commenced. — Becomes  a  strong  Fortress. — Difficulties  in  Southwestern  Louisi- 
ana.— Bienville  resolves  to  occupy  Texas. — His  "Order"  to  Bernard  La  Harpe. — La 
Halle's  Occupation  of  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard. — Indian  Hostilities  east  of  the  Missis- 
sippi.— "  Fort  Conde"  built  on  the  Alabama. — Increase  of  Poiralation  by  different  Ar- 
rivals.— Colonies. — Convicts. — Females  from  the  Houses  of  Connection  in  Paris. — In- 
terdiction of  Convicts  to  Louisiana. — Arrival  of  Emignmts  and  Slaves. — New  Orleans 
becomes  the  Capital  of  the  Province. — Embairassmont  of  the  Western  Company. — 
Sufferings  of  the  Colonies  and  Scarcity  of  Food. — Revolt  of  Troops  at  Fort  Conde. — 
New  Orleans  in  1723. — Picture  of  Law's  celebrated  Scheme. — Its  Character. — False 
Basis. — Credit  System. — Mining  Delusion. — Schemes  for  procrastinating  the  Catastro- 
phe.— Bursting  of  the  "Babble." — Calamitous  Consequences  of  an  iuflatod  CmTcucy 

2l(i 


K- 


CHAPTER  VII. 

LOUISIANA  UNDER  THE  "WESTERN   COMPANY,"   FROM  THE   FAILURE 
OP   law's  "  MISSISSIPPI  scheme"  TO  THE  NATCHEZ  MASSACRE. 

A.D.  1723  TO  1729. 

Argument. — State  of  the  Colony  of  Louisiana. — Disastrous  Effects  of  Law's  Failure 
in  1722. — Origin  of  the  "  German  Coast." — Louisiana  divided  into  Nine  Judicial  Dis- 
tricts.— The  Mining  Delusion  still  haunts  the  Company. — First  Outbreak  of  Hostil- 
ities among  the  Natchez  Indians. — Bienville's  stem  and  cruel  Demands.  —  His 
Treachery  and  Revenge  against  the  Natchez. — Their  Feelings  toward  the  French. — 
Threatening  Attitude  of  Indian  Tribes.— Crops  and  Plantations  destroyed  by  Ecjui- 
noctial  Storm. — Colony  threatened  with  Famine. — Swiss  Troops  Revolt. — FinanciaJ 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


Difficulties.— Population  In  1723.— Royal  Edicts  for  Roliof  of  Debtors.— Prosperity 
in  1724-6. — Province  supplied  with  Ecclesiastics  and  Nuns. — Chevalier  Porrier  ap- 
pointed Governor  of  the  Province. — Bienville  retires. — Colonial  Prosperity  and  Trade 
in  1726-7.— Indigo,  Fig,  and  Orange  introdncod. — "  Cassette  Girls." — Land  Titles  ru 
corded.— Prosperous  Condition  in  1728. — Population. — Trade. — Indications  of  Indian 
Hostilities  disregarded  by  Company. — Freneh  Aggressions  and  Intolerance  toward 
the  Natchez  Tribe.— Indian  Impatience  of  Revenge. — French  Indifference  to  Dan- 
ger.—Chickasii  Conspiracy. — Chopart's  Aggressions  among  the  Natchez.— Consjiira- 
cy  of  the  Natchez  Chiefs  for  Revenge.- Chopart's  Insensibility  to  Danger.- Colony 
'  on  the  est.  Catharine  destroyed  by  tho  Indians,  November  28,  17D3.— Massacre,  and 
the  Slain Page  ^ir, 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

LOUISIANA  UNDER  "THE  WESTERN  COMPANY"  AFTER  THE  NATCHEZ 
MASSACRE  :     EXTERMINATION     OF    THE     NATCHEZ    TRIBES. A.D. 

1729  TO  1733. 

Argiivicnt. — Consternation  in  Louisiana  after  tho  Natchez  Tragedy. — The  Governor, 
M.  Perricr,  prepares  to  invade  the  Natchez  Country. — Loubois  loads  on  tho  French 
Troops  and  Allies. — Lesueur  leads  on  the  Choctds. — Lesueur  arrives  on  the  St.  Cath- 
arine with  his  Chocta  Allies. — They  attack  the  Natchez  Towns  and  return  victori- 
onsly. — Loubois  arrives  with  the  Artillerj*. — After  a  short  Siege,  the  Indians  propose 
"  an  Armistice. — Loubois  permits  the  Natchez  Warriors  to  escape  him. — Erects  a  ter- 
•  raced  Fort  and  retires  to  New  Orleans. — The  Natchez  Tribes  retire  to  Black  River, 
and  there  Fortify  themselves. — Tho  ChickasAs  espouse  tho  Natchez  Cause. — Eng- 
lish Intrigue  active  among  the  Chickasns. — Cliouacas  Tribe  exterminated  by  the 
French  and  Negro  Troops. — Negro  Insurrection  arrested. — Military  Strength  of  the 
Province. —  Small  Re-enforcenient  arrives  from  France. — M.  Perrier  advances  his 

■  Forces  to  Black  River. — Invests  the  Natchez  Stronghold. — Negotiations  for  Capitu- 
lation.— The  "  Great  Sun"  and  fifty-two  Indians  surrendered. — Pcrrier's  Demand  re- 
fused, and  the  Cannonade  opens  again. — The  Besieged  abandon  the  Fort  during  a 
dark  and  stormy  Night. — Many  are  overtaken  and  captured. — Tho  French  Army  re- 
turn to  New  Orleans  with  their  Prisoners. — The  Prisoners  are  sold  into  West  Indian 
Slavery. — The  Remnant  of  the  Natchez  Tribe  irabodies  on  Red  River. — They  attack 
the  French  Post  at  Natchitoches,  and  arc  repulsed  with  great  Loss. — Termination  of 
the  Natchez  War. — Personal  Characteristics  of  this  Tribe. — State  of  the  J'rovince  at 
the  Close  of  the  War. — The  Company  resolve  to  surrender  their  Charter. — The  King's 

■  Proclamation  announces  its  Acceptance,  April  10th,  1732. — Retrospect  of  the  Prov- 
ince under  the  Company. — The  Crown  purchases  the  Company's  Effects,  and  the 
Royal  Government  is  established    . 2C3 

CHAPTER  IX. 


s  Failure 
[licial  Dis- 
of  Hostil- 
ds.- Hi.s 
French. — 
by  Eijui- 
Financial 


I 
I 

i 


LOUISIANA  UNDER  THE  ROYAL  GOVERNORS  UNTIL  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE 
CHICKASA  WAR. A.D.   1733  TO  1741. 

^rg-ioncn^.- Recapitulation  of  Chickasii  Hostilities,  and  English  Intrigue  from  Cai-o- 
Una  and  Georgia.— Bienville  reappointed  Commandant-general  of  Louisiana.— He 
resolves  to  chastise  the  Chickasas. — Demands  a  Surrender  of  the  Natchez  Refu- 
gees.—Prepares  to  invade  the  Chickasa  Country.— Indian  Alliances  fonned  with 
ChoctAs.— Plan  of  Operations  to  invade  from  the  North  and  South  simultaneously.— 
Bienville,  with  the  main  Army  and  Allies,  proceeds  up  the  Tombigby. — Is  delayed 
by  Rains.— Marches  to  the  ChickasA  Strong-hold.— Attacks  the  Fortress,  and  is  re- 
pulsed with  Loss. — Retires,  and  finally  retreats  down  the  Tombigby.— Defeat  of 
D'Artaguette,  with  the  Rlinois  Forces.— His  Captivity  and  Death  in  the  Chickasft 
Conntiy.— Bienville's  Account  of  the  ChickasA  Fort. — Chickasds  send  Runners  to 


XVI 


CONTENTS. 


apprise  the  Engliih  of  their  Victory  over  the  French. — Bienville,  overwhelmed  with 
Chagrin,  resolves  on  a  second  Invasion  from  the  Mississippi. — The  Plan  of  Invasion 
approved  by  the  Minister  of  War. — The  Grand  Army  proceeds  up  the  Mississippi  to 
Fort  St.  Francis. — Fort  Assumption  built  on  Fourth  Chickas&  Blu£P.— Delays  from 
Sickness  and  Want  of  Provisions. — M.  Celeron  advances  with  a  Detachment  toward 
the  Chickas4  Towns. — Concludes  a  Peace,  by  Bienville's  Order,  with  a  single  Vil- 
lage.—Fort  Assumption  dismantled,  and  the  Army  descends  to  New  Orleans. — Bien- 
ville retires  under  the  Disgrace  of  a  second  Failure,  and  is  superseded  by  the  Marquis 
de  Vaudreuil  as  Governor. — Retrospect  of  the  Condition  of  the  Province  up  to  the 
Year  1741 Page  277 

CHAPTER  X. 

CONDITION  OF  LOUISIANA  FROM  THE  CLOSE    OF  THE  CHICKASA  WAR 


UNTIL    THE    TERMINATION 

1741  TO  1764. 


OF     THE    FRENCH    DOMINION. A.D. 


Argument. — Louisiana  continues  Prosperous  and  free  from  Indian  Hostilities  until  the 
Close  of  the  Acadian  War. — Agriculture  and  Trade  prosper  under  individual  Enter- 
prise—Equinoctial Storm  in  1745. — Rigorous  Winter  of  1748-9  killed  the  Orange- 
trees. — La  Buissoni^re  and  Macarty  Commandants  at  Fort  Chartres. — Condition  of 
Ag^cultural  Settlements  near  New  Orleans. — Staples,  Rice,  Indigo,  Cotton,  Tobacco. — 
Sugar-cane  first  introduced  in  1751,  and  Sugar  subsequently  becomes  a  Staple  Product. 
— The  British  resume  their  Intrigue  with  the  Choct&s  and  Chickas&s  after  the  Close 
of  the  Acadian  War. — Choctds  commence  War. — Chickas&s  resume  Hostilities  on 
the  Mississippi. — Disturbances  break  out  on  the  Ohio  with  the  English  Provinces. — 
Governor  Vaudreuil  invades  the  Chickasa  Country  by  way  of  the  Tombigby. — Rav- 
ages their  Towns  and  Fields. — Collisions  between  French  and  English  on  the  Ohio. 
— Ohio  Company's  Grant  leads  to  Hostilities. — Re-enforcement  sent  to  Fort  Char- 
tres.— Lower  Louisiana  is  prosperous. — Horrid  Military  Execution  for  Revolt  at  Cat 
Island. — British  Inhumanity  to  the  People  of  Acadia. — Origin  of  the  "Acadian 
Coast"  in  1755. — Louisiana  suffers  again  from  Paper  Money  in  1756. — ^The  French 
abandon  the  Ohio  Region. — Canada  falls  under  the  Arms  of  Britain  in  1759,  and 
many  Canadians  emigrate  to  Louisiana. — France  relinquishes  all  Louisiana,  by 
Treaties  of  1762  and  1763,  to  Spain  end  Great  Britain. — Great  Britain  takes  posses- 
sion of  Florida  and  Eastern  Louisiana  in  1764-5. — Spain  assumes  Jurisdiction  over 
Western  Louisiana  in  1765. — Extension  of  the  Limits  of  West  Florida  by  Great 
Britain. — Spain  and  Great  Britain  divide  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  until  the 
United  States  succeed,  first  to  British,  and  then  to  Spanish  Louisiana        .       .  294 


BOOK    III. 

GREAT  BRITAIN  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 

CHAPTER  I. 

EXPULSION    OP    THE     FRENCH     FROM    THE    OHIO    REGION. INDIAN 

HOSTILITIES   UNTIL   THE   CLOSE  OF  PONTIAc's   WAR. A.D.    1757 

TO   1764. 

^rj^men^.— England  persists  in  occupying  the  Upper  Ohio  Region.— The  Frontier  An- 
glo-American Settlements  driven  back  in  1757. — Indian  Hostilities  West  of  the  Blue 
Bidge.— Shawanese  Incursions  in  1757.— Sandy  Creek  Expedition  under  Colonel 
Lewis. — Peace  established  with  the  Cherokees. — Fort  Loudon  built  on  South  Branch 
of  Holston.— First  White  Settlements  on  the  Holston  in  1758.— Explorations  of  Dr. 


CONTENTS. 


XVIJ 


Wnlkpr  and  otheri  in  1738,  and  prcviouBly.— Force*  for  Reduction  of  Fort  Dn<|iicinc 
— Major  Grant's  Defeat  at  Fort  Duciucsno. — French  and  Indiana  attack  Colonel  Uou- 
quel's  Camp  at  Loyal  Hannn. — Oeneral  Forbes  advances  to  Fort  Duqucsnu. — ()c 
cupics  tlio  deserted  Pf)gt. — "  Fort  Pitt"  commenced. — Fort  Biird  erected  on  tlie  Mo- 
nonirnhela,  1759. — Cherokoos  resume  Hostilities. — A  Portion  of  the  Cherokees  averse 
to  Hostilities. — Friendly  Cherokee  Doputotion  imprisoned  at  Fort  George.— Cliero- 
ki.'e.s  attempt  to  rescue  their  Chiefs. — General  Clierokeo  War  provoked  in  17(10. — 
Copture  and  Massacre  of  Fort  Loudon. — Colonel  Grant  invades  the  Cherokee  Na- 
tion.—Peace  with  Cherokees  restored  in  1761. — British  Arms  victorious  in  New 
Froiice  and  Canada. — Eni,disli  Settlements  from  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  advanci- 
upon  tlie  Waters  of  the  Ohio  in  1762-3. — Treaty  of  Paris  confirms  to  Kndand  nil 
Canada  and  Eastern  Louisiana.  —  The  Northwestern  Indians  refuse  their  As- 
sent to  the  Treaty. — The  "  Six  Nations." — Their  territorial  Limits. — The  Western 
Tribes  resolve  to  resist  the  Advance  of  the  English  Power. — The  King's  conciliator\' 
Proclamation  of  1763. — Locations  and  Grants  made  on  the  Waters  of  the  Ohio ;  on 
Client  River. — Indian  League  under  Pontiac,  the  great  OttawA  Chief,  or  Emperor. — 
His  Character  and  Plan  of  offensive  Operations. — Catholic  Missionaries  and  Jesuits 
not  Instigators  of  the  War. — Terrible  Onset  of  Indian  Hostilities. — Traders  first  Vic- 
tims.— Capture  of  the  Western  Posts  by  Indians. — Capture  of  Presqno  Isle  ;  of  Fort 
Miamis  ;  of  Mackinaw.— Massacre  of  the  Garrison  and  Inmates. — Siege  of  Fort 
Pitt.— Colonel  Bouquet  defeats  Indian  Ambuscade  at  Turtle  Creek. — Protracted 
Siege  of  Detroit  by  Pontiac  in  Person. — The  Defense  by  Major  Gladwyn.— Incidents 
of  Indian  Warfare  and  savage  Barbarity. — A  Detachment  of  Troops  with  Supplies 
for  Detroit  cut  off  by  Indians. — Captain  Dalzel  slaiu  iu  a  Sortie. — Exposed  Condition 
of  the  western  and  southwestern  Frontiers. — Indian  Hostilities  in  Pennsylvania. — 
"Massacre  of  Wyoming." — Hostilities  in  Virginia,  at  Muddy  Creek  and  Big  Lev- 
els.— Attack  on  Fort  Ligonier. — Fort  Loudon.  —  Hostilities  on  Susquehanna;  en 
Greenbrier  and  Jackson  Rivers. — Terror  of  eastern  Part  of  Now  York. — Marauding 
Bands  of  Indians  on  the  southwestern  Frontier. — Lawless  white  Men  on  the  Fron- 
tiers.— Outrages  and  Massacres  committed  by  the  Paxton  Boys. — Origin  and  De- 
signs of  this  Banditti. — Military  Movements  of  the  English  Forces  toward  the  Fron- 
tier.— Advance  of  General  Bradstreet  to  Niagara. — Treaty  of  Niagara. — Treaty  of 
Detroit. — Pontiac  opposes  the  Treaty. — Colonel  Bouquet  invades  the  Indian  Countrv' 
upon  the  Muskingum. — Forms  a  Treaty. — Treaty  of  the  "  German  Flats"  with  the 
"  Six  Nations." — Peace  proclaimed  December  5th,  1764       ....  Page  30!t 

CHAPTER  II. 


'I. 


INDIAN 

.  1757 


ADVANCE  OP  THE  ANGLO-AMERICAN   POPULATION  TO  THE  OHIO  RIV- 
ER.  SETTLEMENTS  AND  EXPLORATIONS. A.D.   1765  TO   1774. 

Argument. — Settlements  spring  up  near  the  military  Routes  and  Posts. — Fort  Pitt. — 
Fort  Burd. — Isolated  Condition  of  the  IlUnois  Settlements. — Advance  of  white  Set- 
tlements upon  the  Sources  of  the  Susquehanna,  Youghiogeny,  and  Monongahela  ; 
also  upon  New  River  and  Greenbrier,  Clinch  and  Holston. — Indian  Territory  on  the 
Susquehaiuia,  Alleghany,  and  Cheat  Rivers. — Frontier  Settlements  of  Virginia  in 
1766. — Emigration  to  the  Monongahela  in  1767. — Redstone  Fort  a  garrisoned  Post. — 
Increase  of  Emigration  in  1768. — Settlements  extend  to  the  Sources  of  the  two  Ken- 
hawas. — The  colonial  System  of  granting  Lands  east  of  the  Ohio. — The  Indians  be- 
come impatient  of  the  white  Man's  Advance. — Mode  of  conciliating  Indians  for  their 
Lands.— Remonstrance  of  the  Six  Nations  to  the  King's  "Indian  Agent." — The  Sub- 
ject of  their  Complaint  laid  before  the  provincial  Legislatm-e. — Treaties  with  north- 
em  and  southern  Indians  ordered  by  royal  Government. — "Treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix." 
— The  "Mississippi  Company"  of  Virginia,  1769. — "Treaty  of  Hard  Labor"  with  Cher- 
okees.—Extensive  Claims  to  Territory  set  up  by  the  English  under  the  "  Treaty  of 
Fort  Stanwix"  with  the  Six  Nations. — Settlements  advance  to  the  Holston  and 
Clinch  Rivera. — Impatience  of  northern  and  southern  Indians  at  the  Advance  of  the 

2 


:_■-.  -.  'JTJj 


XVlll 


CONTENTri. 


H 


Whitoi.— Exiiloration*  of  Dr.  Walker  wert  of  Cninbcrlaml  Monntaim,  in  17fi9 ;  of 
Fiiiley,  in  170l» ;  of  Ciiloiiel  Knox.— "  Loiig-Huntors."— Wostoni  Emiurrntion  onoour- 
agL-d  by  royal  coloiiiul  Uoveninicnti. — Emigration  to  Holiton,  Cliucli,  and  to  Wuit 
Floriiin,  in  1770.— Fort  Pitt  a  garrigonod  I'ogt.— Settlemoiits  nt  llcditono  Fort,  on 
Ohio,  nt  Wiioeling,  and  other  Points,  in  1770.— Enthuiiiagm  of  onstoru  Settlements 
for  western  Emigration.— Territory  claimed  by  Virginia.- Emigrant*  from  North 
CuroliuR  advance  upon  the  Sources  of  Holstcm  lliver.— Impatience  uf  the  Cherokocs. 
— "  Ti-ffity  of  Lochaber."- Now  boundary  Line.— The  four  hundred  aero  Settlement 
Act  of  Virginia,  passed  in  1770. — "  District  of  West  Augusta"  organized.— Cresap's 
Settlement  at  llcdstono  "Old  Fort,"  in  1771.— Provisions  fail,  — The  "Starving 
Year  '  of  177S. — Settlements  on  the  Ohio  above  the  Kenlmwa. — Ilouti!  from  enstem 
Settlfinents  to  the  Ohio. — Manner  of  traveling. — Emigration  to  the  West  increases 
greatly  in  177:t. — To  Western  Virginia.— To  "  Western  District"  of  North  Carolina. 
— To  West  Florida.— Numerous  Surveyors  sent  out  to  Kentucky.— Thomas  Bullitt, 
Hancock  Taylor,  M'Afee.— Surveys  near  Frankfort,  Harrodsburg,  and  Danville.— 
Captain  Bullitt  at  the  Palls  of  Ohio.— Settlements  on  the  Holston,  East  Tennessee.^ — 
Daniel  Boone  attempts  to  introduce  white  Families  from  North  Carolina.— Driven 
back  by  Indians. — Emigration  in  1774  to  the  Upper  Ohio ;  on  the  Monongahela, 
Kcnhnwa,  and  Kentucky  Regions. — Simon  Kenton  at  May's  Lick, — James  Harrod  at 
Harrodsburg. — West  Augusta  in  1774. — Outrages  of  lawless  white  Men  provoke  In 
dian  Vengeance. — Wheeling  Fort  built. — Fort  Fincastle. — Dr.  Connolly  Command- 
ant of  West  Augusta Page  34:( 

CHAPTER  III. 

LORD  DUNMORe's  INDIAN  WAR  :  EXTENSION  OF  THE  WESTERN  SET- 
TLEMENTS FROM  THE  TREATY  OP  "  CAMP  CHARLOTTE"  TO  THE 
DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. A.D.  1774  TO  1776. 

Argument. — The  Indians  reluctantly  assent  to  Boundaries  claimed  by  the  Treaty  of  Fort 
Stanwix. — Outrages  of  lawless  white  Men  provoke  Indian  Resentment. — Explor- 
ers and  Land-jobbers. — Rumor  of  Indian  Depredations  circulated  by  them. — Alarm  ex- 
cited among  Explorers. — Captain  Crcsap  advises  Violence,  and  heads  a  Party  which 
murders  some  Indians  above  Wheeling  and  at  Captina  Creek. — Greathouse  lends 
another  Party  against  the  Indians  at  Yellow  Creek. — Other  Murders  preceding  these. 
— Murder  of  "Bald  Eagle"  Chief. — Five  Families  at  BuUtown. — Indian  Revenge 
commences  upon  the  Traders. — Consternation  on  the  Frontier. — Settlements  aban- 
doned.— Union  Station  near  Laurel  Hill  established. — Hostile  Incursions  of  Indians. 
— Defensive  Measures  under  Lord  Duumorc. — The  Wappatomica  Campaign  mider 
General  M'Donald. — Surveys  and  Explorations  in  Kentucky  suspended  in  1774. — 
Daniel  Boone  conducts  Surveyors  to  old  Settlements. — General  Lewis  marches  down 
the  Kenhawa. — Learns  the  Change  of  Dunmore's  Plans. — The  severe  "Battle  of  the 
Point." — Loss  of  the  Virginians  and  of  Indians. — "  Cornstalk,"  the  King  of  the  Shaw- 
anese. — Lord  Dunmore's  Advance  to  the  Scioto. — "  Camp  Charlotte"  fortified. — Op- 
erations against  the  Shawanese  Towns.-^Negotiations  with  the  Indians. — General 
Lewis  advances  to  the  Scioto. — He  indignantly  obeys  Dunmore's  Order  to  halt. — 
Treaty  of  Camp  Charlotte  opened. — Speech  of  Cornstalk ;  of  Logan. — Stipulations 
of  this  Treaty. — Peace  proclaimed,  January  7th,  177.5. — Suspicions  against  Lord 
Dunmore. — Emigration  revives  in  the  West. — Explorations  resumed  in  Kentucky. — 
Colonel  Floyd  on  Bear-grass  Creek. — Other  Surveys  and  Settlements. — Settlements 
on  the  Holston  and  Clinch  in  1775. — Preparations  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  for 
the  Occupancy  of  Kentucky. — Patrick  Henry  and  others. — Colonel  Henderson  and 
others. — Treaty  of  Watauga. — Colonel  Henderson's  Land  Company. — Preparations 
for  establishing  the  Colony  of  Transylvania. — Boone  Pioneer  of  the  Colony  to  Kentucky 
River. — Boonesborough  erected. — Colonel  Henderson  leads  out  his  Colony. — Boone 
leads  another  in  the  Fall. — "  Plan  of  Boonesborough." — Logan's  Fort  built. — Com- 
pany's LandofiSce. — Proprietary  Government  established  in  Transylvania,  1775. — ^Acts 


4 


CONTENTS. 


XIX 


ty  of  Fort 
Explor- 
Alarra  ex- 
rty  which 
luse  leads 
ing  these, 
llcvenge 
nts  aban- 
Indians. 
gn  under 
1774.— 
hes  down 
tie  of  the 
;he  Shaw- 
led.—Op- 
— General 
to  halt.- 
pulntions 
nst  Lord 
atucky. — 
ttlements 
rolina  for 
jrson  and 
parations 
entucky 
. — Boone 
It. — Com- 
5. — Acts 


of  Lo!iiKlftturc>,  ierond  Pruiiion.- Tho  Company  momnrinlizetho  Fndoral  rmiLTi'sn — 
()|)|M(Nili()ii  to  the  Proprietary  Government.— Trannylvaiiia  Hipublu-  miTKes  into  t!ii- 
Statr  (iiiviTMiiiciit  of  V'iri^inia. — Settlements  begin  to  fonn  on  the  north  .Side  of  Ken- 
tucky River.— Hnrrods  ritntion  erected  in  1770,- Colonel  Hiirrod  introduces  the  tiist 
KiiniiiicH  from  tlio  Mononpntieln.- Declaration  of  Aniericaii  Indepcndiuice. —  Indiiin 
Hostilities  begin  in  Kentucky.— Preparations  for  Defense.— Major  George  llogert 
Ciarit  superintends  the  Militia  Organization Pago  3(iH 

CHAPTER  IV. 

BniTISri    OCCUPANCY    OP    FLOIIIUA    AND    THK     IM.INOIS    COUNTRY. 

CLOSi:   OF  THE   niirTISH  DOMINION   IN   THE   MISSISSIl'I'I  VALLEY. 

A.I).  1764  TO  1782. 

Argument. — Extent  of  Florida  and  the  IIHnois  Country  under  the  British  Dominion. — 
English  Authority  established  in  West  Florida  by  Governor  Johnston. — Major  LofMs 
appointed  Commandant  of  Illinois. — His  Defeat  above  Tunica  Bayou,  and  bis  Death. — 
Dissatisfaction  of  the  French  of  West  Florida. — Population  in  !"(>•. — Anglo-Ameri- 
can Emigration  to  Florida  encouraged. — Emigrants  arrive  from  1765  to  1770. — Great 
Increase  of  Emigrants  in  1773  to  177fi. — Settlements  on  east  Side  of  the  Mississippi. 
— British  Military  Posts  in  West  Florida. — Monopoly  of  Trad*;  by  British  Traders. — 
Emigration  in  1775-6. — Agriculture  encouraged. — British  Tories  in  West  Florida. — 
British  Authority  established  in  the  lllinuh  Country,  1765. — St.  Ange. — Captain 
Stirling. — French  Population  in  1765, — General  Gage's  Proclamation. — Major  Frazcr. 
— Colonel  Reed. — Cokmel  Wilklns. — His  Administration. — Grants  of  Land. — British 
Military  Posts  in  the  Northwest. — Detroit. — Kaskaskia. — Cahokia. — St.  Vincent. — 
Prejudices  of  the  Illinois  French. — Detroit,  Vinccnnes,  and  Kaskaskia  the  Sourcci 
of  all  the  Indian  Barbarities  on  the  Western  Frontier. — Reduction  of  these  British 
Posts  indispensable  to  the  Security  of  the  Virginia  Frontier. — Plan  of  CoUmel  Clark's 
Expedition  for  their  Reduction. — Colonel  Clark  leads  his  Expedition  to  Kaskaskia. — 
The  Fort  and  Town  taken  by  Surprise. — Stem  Demeanor  of  the  Commander  toward 
the  French. — Happy  Results. — Cahokia  surrenders  to  Captain  Bowman. — Goven.nr 
Rocheblavo  sent  Prisoner  to  Virginia. — People  of  Vincennes  declare  for  Viri;inia. — 
Indian  Negotiations  and  Treaties  on  the  Wabash. — Jurisdiction  of  Virginia  extended 
over  the  Illinois  Country. — "  Illinois  County." — Colonel  Hamilton  advanc(!s  with  a 
strong  Force  from  Detroit. — Captain  Helm  capitulates. — Clark  advances  to  recap- 
ture the  Post. — Colonel  Hamilton  taken  by  Surprise. — Despairs  of  successful  Dcfi-nse, 
and  capitulates. — Captain  Helm  captures  a  Detachment  with  Supplies  from  Detroit. 
— Colonel  Hamilton  sent  Captive  to  Virginia.— Is  placed  in  close  Confinement  in  re- 
taliation for  his  Inhumanity. — Colonel  Clark  contemplates  the  Capture  of  Detroit. — 
British  Power  expelled  from  the  Illinois  Country. — Difficulties  begin  in  West  Florida. 
— Captain  Willing  descends  the  Mississippi. — His  Collision  with  the  People  at  Natch- 
ez.— First  Act  of  Hostility  at  Ellis  Cliifs. — Spain  espouses  the  American  Cause. — 
Galvez  invades  West  Florida. — Captures  British  Posts  at  Manchac,  Baton  Rouge, 
Natchez,  and  Mobile. — Is  unsuccessful  at  Pensacola. — Pensacola  captured  in  1781. — All 
Florida  submits  to  tho  Arms  of  Spain. — British  Dominion  ceases  on  the  Mississippi 

402 


x\ 


OONTKNTK. 


BOOK    IV. 

SPAIN  IN  THK  VAI.LKY  OF  Till:  MISSISSIPPI. 

I. 

CHAPTEU  I. 

I-  ilISLWA  UNI»i;it  THK  DOMINION    fil'    rtl'AIN    TROM    Till;   KISMKMUKK- 
MCNT  TO  Tin:   KXI'I'LHION  OF  TIIK  KNOI.MII   FlloM  FI-OIIMIA. — A. I), 

17(53  TO  17H3. 

Arjiuiiwnl. — Kxtoiit  ofHpttniBh  LnuiNlniia. — Hi'iiiii^nanro  of  tlm  Frt'iicli  (if  VVunt  Flor- 
idii  to  tlio  Knulix))  Doniiiiiiin. —  Kmicli  Oiipoxitioti  tn  tlic  t^pniiiiili  Doiiiiiiioii  in  T.oiii- 
«iaiin. — Hpiiiii  indukos  tluMr  Prrjiidici'ii  l)y  (Ipft-rriiii;  licr  Jurisdiclion, — Public  Ho- 
nuiiiMtrniK'i'H  ami  Pi'titioim  nufninitt  tliii  Transfer  to  Hpain. — .loan  Millict  sent  a  Dolo- 
triitc  to  Pnrid. — His  MiHnion  iinfiiii'ccRHfiii. — Arrivni  of  Don  Uiloa  as  Spiinisli  Ciininiifi- 
iionor  in  N»!W  Orlonnn. — Hn  dclnyH  ttio  formnl  Tranxfcr  of  tins  Provint'e. —  Fronrli 
Popidation  in  Louininna  in  ITfiti.— 8paninli  Troops  arrivo  for  tlio  diiri-runt  I'osts. — 
Popular  KxritcniL'iit  ai^ainst  Ulloa. — Tlui  .Siiporior  Council  roipiirus  him  to  loavo  tlio 
Provincu  or  produce  his  Commission. — He  retires  on  Hoard  n.  Spanish  Manofwar. — 
Perilous  (^'oiuiition of  the  pniminunt  Malecontents. — Sc'cond  Convention. — .Second  Mis- 
sion to  Paris. — General  O'lleilly  arrives  at  the  Hiilize  with  a  stroni,'  Spanish  Force. 
— He  notilioB  Auliry  o<'  liis  Arrival  and  his  Powers.— His  Profodsious  of  Lenity. — 
Ceremony  of  Transfer,  August  18th,  17(i!». — The  Fla,i,'of  fclpaindiHplnces  that  of  Franco. 
— Popidatiou  of  Louisiana  in  17(i!l. — Hettlenunits  of  Upper  Louisiana. — Arrest  of 
twelve  prominent  French  Citizens. — Their  Trials,  Imprisonment,  and  IOxe<Mition. — 
Spanish  Jurisdiction  formally  introduced  in  the  Province. — "Superior  Council"  super- 
Boded  by  the  "  Cabaldo." — Inferior  Courts  organized. — Rules  of  procedure  in  thu 
Courts. — Spanish  Fniigronts  arrive. — Summary  of  O'Reilly's  Administration. — Sub- 
se<|uent  Spanish  Rule. — Commerce  ond  Airricnlturo  under  ITnzaga's  mild  Rule. — 
Populotion  of  U]>por  Louisiana  in  177G. — Qalvez  Governor  of  Louisiana. — Dritisli 
Traders  trom  Florida  endeavor  to  monopolize  the  Trade  of  the  Mississippi. — Spain 
favorable  to  the  American  Revolution. — Oliver  PoIKm-U  and  Captain  Willing  in  New 
Orleans. — Spain  espouses  the  War  against  Groat  Britain. — West  Florida  invaded 
by  Governor  Galvez. — Fort  Charlotte  captured  in  1780. — Unsuccessful  Attack  on 
Pensacola. — Attack  on  St.  Louis  by  British  and  Indians  from  Mackinaw. — Repulsed 
by  Spaniards  and  Americans. — Bombardment  and  Caiiture  of  Pensacola,  May  !Uh, 
1781. — Surrender  of  West  Florida. — Cession  of  East  Florida  to  Spain. — Revolt  in 
the  Natchez  District,  and  Capture  of  Fort  Panmure  in  1781. — Proceedings  of  tlio 
Spanish  Authorities  against  the  Insurgents. — Treaty  of  1783  concluded. — Revival  of 
Agricultural  and  commercial  Enterprise Page  'HI 


CHAPTER  II. 

LOUISIANA    UNDER    THE    SPANISH  DOMINION,  FROM   THE    TREATY   OF 
1783  TO  THE  YEAR  1796.— A.D.   1783  TO   1790. 

Argument. — Prosperous  Condition  of  Louisiana  after  the  War. — Population  in  178.". — 
Qalvez  retires  from  Louisiana. — Don  Miro  succee<ls  to  the  i)rovisional  Govenmient. 
— Judge  of  Residence. — Catholic  Church  in  Louisiana. — Inquisition  excluded. — Aca- 
dian Emigi'ants. — Indulgence  to  British  Subjects  in  West  Florida. — Irish  Catholic 
Priests  for  the  Natchez  District. — Miro  succeeds  as  Governor-general  of  Louisiana  in 
178t). — An'ival  of  the  Commissioners  of  Georgia. — Georgia  Act  creating  "  Bourlwn 
County." — Si)ani8h  Duties  upon  American  river  Trade. — Extension  of  American  Set- 
tlements in  the  Ohio  Region. — Claims  of  western  People  to  free  Navigation  of  the 
Mississippi. — Their  Impatience  under  Spani.sh  Imposts. — They  contemplate  the  In- 
vasion of  Louisiana  by  military  Force. — Nature  and  Extent  of  Spanish  Imposts. — 


i 


CONTRNTH. 


XXI 


'  <;1 


lli'lnxntinn  of  imixiiit  Diition. — f'Dliiiiol  Wilkiiimiti'i  Aiti'iicy  in  I'lTcrtinh;  llcliixntioii 
i)t' rcvoniiu  Lawi.— Kiiiiurntioii  of  Ariicrii'iini  tn  Wont  Floridit  nixl  Loiiiiiniiii. — Ofii- 
oral  MiirL'Hii'a  Cdlony.— "  Nuw  Miulriil"  liiid  oil'.— (iunriti)i|iii  nrK<'«  ricid  Kni'i'iitiiui 
of  iiiipoKt  lli>uiilntioiiit. — Till!  Iiiteiiilniit  rii;oriiiiiily  iMiforrfN  ri'vctiiic  Lnwi.— Li>iiiitliiii!i 
thri-iituimii  with  militnrj-  Invimloii  I'rom  Oliio  lli>^lori. — Conlliiurntinn  of  Ni'W  Orlcniin 
i„  i7»<><.— 8u|i|iliu«  frtiiii  tlio  Ohio  ndiiiittt'il  by  tho  river  Trmiu. — ('oloiicl  VVilkinioii 
I'tij^nci  !t  ill  tlui  tohniTo  Trniio. —  Kiiiiifrntion  from  ('iiiiiIhtIiiikI  to  Loiiiainiin  ciKtiiir- 
■pctii  i»Ihi>  fnini  tlin  Oliin  niiil  the  illiiioii. — I'opiilntioii  of  Loiiininiia  in  17HH. — Knii- 
firratlon  aiiit  Trftilii  from  tlio  Ohio  ItuKion  in  UHtMlO. — Policy  rt'roiiimciiih'il  liy  Nii- 
\nffi'  to  e<i)aiii.— tipniii  Ji-aioiiii  of  tlio  Kxtciiiioii  of  tliu  FiMlornI  Juriiilictioii.— Firitt 
SchiHilg  mill  Aradoraien  in  New  Orlcnna. — Huron  Cnnmilclt't  micrm-dn  Miro  dm  Uov- 
cnior  of  Louisiantt.-— Pop'dntioii  of  New  Orlennn  in  171)','. — Trndii  with  I'hilndelphin. 
— I'lililiciil  Dieturbiuiceu  .■iniiiintinjf  from  rovolutioimry  Frniire  in  17!i:i. — (lenet'a  In- 
triu'uen  iiiid  contcmplnted  Iiivniioii  of  f,oiiisin!ia  niid  Florida  from  tin-  Unitrd  Htntui. 
— Defensive  Movementii  of  Haron  Carondelot  in  LouiHiaiia. — Mensni'i-s  "f  the  Feder- 
al Government  to  Kiippreg!)  any  hontilu  Movement. —  Fort  HniTuneaH  eoniim  need  «t 
the  Iburth  ChiukaaiV  BluH'. — t,'ounter-])lot  of  C'arondelet  for  elfeetinK  n  Separation  ct 
western  People.— Don  llendon  Intendaiit  ot  Louiiiiana  and  Florida.— LonJHiaiia  ami 
Florida  an  indopenilent  Bishopric. — Caroiulelet  improves  ami  fortilies  tlu'  City  of 
Nuw  Orleans  ;  drains  tlio  back  Hwamps. — A  navigable  Caiml.— "  Canal  Canindclet' 
completeil.- The  Indigo  Crop  fails,  and  (.'otton,  Sugar,  and  Tobacco  sucecod.— Loui- 
siana relieved  fn)m  Apprehension. — Genet's  Agi'iits  arrested ;  himself  recalled. — 
French  Uoyalists  pniposu  to  suttlo  a  Colony  on  tho  Washita. — Arrangements  with 
Maison  llouge.— Alleged  Grant  and  Colony  of  Maiion  llouge.— Suhsoiiuent  Litiga- 
tion.— Adjudication  and  final  Rejoctionnf  tho  C;iaim  as  fraudulent. — Graiil  to  Knninde 
Uastrop. — Americans  excluded  from  Louisiana  and  Fkirida,—  Gpant  to  Dubutjue  on 
Uppor  Mississippi. — Carondelot's  Intrigues  for  tho  Separation  of  fcontiicky  from  tho 
Union. — Uayoso  sunt  to  nogotiato  with  the  Kentucky  Conspirators. — SebastJHn  de 
Bcendg  to  Natchez  and  New  Orleans. — Negro  Insurrection  discovered  ond  suppress 
cd  in  the  Island  of  Point  Coupf'^o. — Negro  Importation  interdicted. — Don  Morales 
is  Intendaiit  for  17Uti. — Ilaron  Carondelet's  last  KHbrt  to  detach  keiitueky  in  179(i. — 
llouto  to  Upper  Louisiana  through  tho  Dayou  Darthelomy  and  St.  Francis  River 

Pago  465 


178,-.— 

■nimeut. 

I.— Aca- 

'ntholio 

iana  in 

Jourlion 

nan  Set- 

of  the 

the  In- 

)OStS. — 


CHAPTER  III. 

POLITICAL    RELATIONS    OF   LOUISIANA    WITH    THE    UNITED    STATErt, 

FROM    THE    TREATY    OP     1783    TO    THE    TREATY    OF    MADRID. 

A.D.   1783    TO    1795. 

Arf^nmcnt. — Field  of  national  Controversy  opened  by  Treaty  of  1783. — Constniction  ol 
tho  Treaty  by  Spain. — Construction  by  United  States.— Navigation  of  the  Mississip 
pi. — Claimed  by  the  United  States. — Spain  claims  the  exclusive  Right. — Denies  Uho 
of  tho  llivcr  to  tho  western  People. — Restrictions  and  Duties  exacted  by  Siianish 
Authorities. — Embarrassed  Condition  of  tho  western  People. — Jealous  Apprehensions 
of  Spain.— Condition  of  American  Settlements. — Indian  Tribes. — Policy  pursued  by 
Spain  toward  Kentucky.— Indignation  of  the  western  People. — Excitement  by  a  Hu- 
mored abandonment  of  the  Claim  of  the  United  States. — Change  of  Spanish  Policy. — 
Governor  Miro  relaxes  tho  Restrictions  upon  tho  western  Trade. — His  conciliatory 
Policy  to  western  People  in  1788-9. — Colonel  Wilkinson's  commercial  Enterprise  with 
New  Orleans  suspected. — Western  People  become  reconciled  to  tho  Spanish  Au- 
thorities.— Cumberland  Settlements. — "  Miro  District." — Emigration  from  Kentucky 
and  Cumberland  encouraged.— Grants  of  Land  in  1790.— Spanish  Intrigue  for  separa- 
ting the  Western  States. — Negotiations  of  tho  Fcderol  Government. — Impatience  of 
tho  western  People. — Disaffection  appears  in  Kentucky. — Negotiations  by  the  Fed- 
eral Government— Spanish  Emissaries  embarrass  Negotiations  with  Creek  Indians, 
1789-1790. — "Soathwestem  Territory"  organized. — H.iron  Carondelet  commences 


S.Xll 


CONTENTS. 


his  IntrifeTie  with  Keiitucky,  1792.— CreekB  instigated  to  Hostilities  by  Spanish  emis 
saries.— Intrigues  of  M.  Genet,  the  French  Minister.— Threatened  Invasion  of  East 
Florida  from  Georgia.— Spain  procrastinates  Negotiations  while  Carondelet  operates 
upon  the  western  People. — War  with  Spain  apprehended  by  President  Washington 
in  1794. — Bnron  Carondelet  apprehends  Danger  from  the  western  People.— Five  po- 
litical Parties  in  the  West.— Powers,  the  Spanish  emissary,  sent  to  Kentucky. — 
Views  of  the  Federal  Government. — It  restrains  the  western  Excitement.— Caron- 
delet renews  his  Mission  to  Kentucky  in  1795. — Gayoso  and  Powers  sent  to  nego- 
tiate with  the  Kentucky  Conspirators.— The  Mission  Fails. — Prospects  of  Disunion 
blasted. — Sebastian  visits  New  Orleans. — Overtures  from  the  Spanish  Court. — Thom- 
as Pinckncy  Minister  to  Spain.— Treaty  of  Madrid  signed,  October  20tli.— Stipulations 
in  the  Treaty  relative  to  Boundary  and  the  river  Trade.— The  Georgia  Bubble.— 
"  Yazoo  Speculation," — Its  Effects  on  Louisiana Page  493 

CHAPTER  IV. 

POLITICAL  RELATIONS  BETWEEN  THE  UNITED  STATES  AND  LOUISI- 
ANA, FROM  THE  TREATY  OF  MADRID  TO  THE  SURRENDER  OF  THE 
NATCHEZ  DISTRICT. A.D.   1796  TO  1798. 

Argument. — Treaty  of  Madrid  merely  a  Measure  of  State  Policy  with  Spain.— Her  In- 
tention to  evade  its  Stipulations,  if  possible. — Intrigue  with  the  western  People. — 
The  United  States  prepare  in  good  Faith  to  carry  out  the  Stipulations.— Colonel  Elli- 
cott,  as  Commissioner  of  the  United  States,  arrives  at  Natchez. — His  Military  Escort 
left  at  Bayou  Pierre. — Gayoso  designates  the  19th  of  March  to  begin  the  Line  of 
Demarkation. — Ellicott  encamps  in  Natchez. — Proceedings  delayed  by  Baron  Caron- 
delet.— Ellicott  orders  down  his  Military  Escort. — Gayoso  suddenly  ceases  Prepara- 
tions to  evacuate  the  Fort  Panmure. — Fortifies  this  Post.— Pretext  for  Change  of 
Conduct. — Lieutenant  M'Leary,  with  his  Escort,  arrives  from  Bayou  Pierre.— Gay- 
oso continues  to  strengthen  his  Defenses. — Indian  Hostilities  alleged  as  the  Cause. 
— Next,  a  British  Invasion  from  Canada  apprehended. — Blount's  Conspiracy,  and  its 
Explosion. — The  People  become  excited. — Correspondence  between  the  American 
Commi.ssioner  and  Gayoso. — Advanced  Guard  under  Lieutenant  Pope  arrives  at 
Natchez. — Gayoso  objects  to  the  Presence  of  United  States  Troops  at  Natchez. — 
Other  Ueasons  for  Delay  urged  by  Gayoso. — His  Agents  tamper  with  the  Indians. 
— Popular  Excitement  increases. — The  Governor-general  issues  his  Proclamation, 
24th  of  May. — Effects  of  this  Proclamation. — Efibrts  of  Gayoso  to  calm  the  popu- 
lar Excitement. — Arrest  and  Imprisonment  of  Hannah. — This  excites  the  People  to 
llesistance. — Colonel  Ellicott  and  Lieutenant  Pope  sustain  the  popular  Commotion. 
— Gayoso's  Proclamation  of  June  14th. — A  public  Meeting  called. — Gayoso  and  his 
Family  retire  to  the  Fort. — Seeks  an  Interview  with  the  American  Commissioner. 
— "  Committee  of  Public  Safety"  appointed. — This  Committee  recognized  by  Gayoso. 
— A  "  Permanent  Committee"  elected. — Opposition  of  Colonel  Hutchens  and  others, 
who  sustain  Gayoso. — Ellicott  retires  to  Washington. — Gayoso  appointed  Governor- 
general. — Retires  to  New  Orleans. — Captain  Guion  arrives  with  United  States 
Troops. — His  Attempt  to  restore  Harniuny  and  Tranquillity. — The  Policy  of  his  Course. 
—The  Posts  of  Nogales  and  Panmure  evacuated  in  March,  1798.— The  Line  of  De- 
markation commenced  in  May,  1798,  and  completed  next  Year. — First  organization 
(tf  the  Mississippi  Territory. — Arrival  of  the  Territorial  Governor  and  Judges. — Gen- 
eral Wilkinson  arrives  with  United  States  Troops. — Retrospect  of  the  Spanish  Poli- 
cy.— Pretexts  for  Delay,  and  the  Litrigue  with  General  Wilkinson  again  unsuccess- 
M —Return  of  Emissary  Powers 51U 


CONTENTS. 


XXUl 


CHAPTER  V. 

CLOSE  OF    THE    SPANISH    DOMINION    IN    LOUISIANA,  AND    THE    FINAL 

TRANSFER  OF  THE  PROVINCE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. A.D.  1797 

TO  1804. 

Argument. — Prosperity  of  Louisiana  unaffected  by  Hostilities  in  Europe. — Gayoso  suc- 
ceeds as  Governor-general  of  Louisiana  in  1797. — The  King's  Orders  relative  to  Land 
Grants— The  Intendant  alone  empowered  to  make  Grants. — French  Privateers. — 
Daniel  Clarke,  Jr.,  recognized  as  Consul. — Hamiony  on  the  Spanish  and  American 
Borders. — Concordia. — Vidalia  in  1 799. — Death  of  Gayoso  in  1799. — His  Successors. — 
Colonel  EUicott's  Eulogy  of  Gayoso. — Population  of  Upper  Louisiana. — Its  Trade  and 
Commerce. — Harmony  with  the  western  People  again  disturbed  by  Morales. — Policy 
of  Spain  in  restricting  her  Grants  of  Land. — Jealous  of  Military  Adventurers. — Re- 
strictions enforced  by  Morales. — His  first  Interdict  of  Deposit  at  New  Orleans. — 
Western  Indignation. — Capture  of  New  Orleans  contemplated. — American  Troops 
in  the  Northwest. — Invasion  of  Louisiana  abandoned  by  John  Adams. — Filhiol  and 
Fejeiro  at  Fort  Miro,  on  the  Washita. — Right  of  Deposit  restored  in  1801. — Again 
suspended  in  1802. — Restored  in  1803. — Approaching  Change  of  Dominion  in  Lou- 
isiana.— The  First  Consul  of  the  French  Republic  acquires  the  Province  of  Louisiana. 
— The  French  Occupation  deferred  one  Year  by  European  Wars. — Napoleon  de- 
termines to  sell  the  Province  to  the  United  States. — Negotiation  for  Sale  commenced. 
— Mr.  Jefferson's  Instructions. — Treaty  of  Cession  signed  April  30th,  1803. — Amoant 
of  Purchase-money. — Terms  of  Payment. — Preparations  for  French  Occupation. — Tue 
Form  of  Government  prepared  by  French  Prefect. — Arrival  of  Laussat,  the  Colonial 
Prefect. — His  Proclamation. — Response  of  the  People. — Proclamation:  of  Governor 
Salcedo. — Rumor  of  Cession  to  United  States. — Laussat  appointed  Commissioner  of 
the  French  Republic. — Conditions  of  the  Treaty  of  April  30th,  1803. — Preparations 
for  Occupation  by  the  United  States. — Protest  of  the  Spanish  King. — Congress  rat- 
ifies the  Treaty. — Commissioners  of  the  United  States. — Preparations  of  French  Com- 
missioner.— Ceremony  of  Spanish  Delivery. — Proclamation  of  the  French  Prefect. — 
Spanish  Rule  abolished  and  French  Government  instituted. — Volunteer  Battalion  for 
the  Preservation  of  Order. — Preparations  for  Delivery  to  the  United  States. — Govern- 
or Claiborne  and  General  Wilkinson  arrive  in  New  Orleans. — Ceremony  of  French  De- 
livery to  the  United  States,  December  20th,  1803. — Remote  Posts  formally  delivered 
subsequently  to  Agents  of  the  French  Prefect. — Major  Stoddart  takes  Possession  of 
Upper  Louisiana,  March  9th,  1804. — Condition  and  Boundaries  of  Louisiana. — Pojiu- 
lation  of  the  Province. — Conunerce. — Agricultural  Products. — Trade  and  Manufac- 
tures of  New  Orleans  Page  538 


1 


f     I 


>  M 


'J 


i; 


-'-  •■  u- 


HISTORY 


OF   TUB 


DISCOVERY  AND  SETTLEMENT 


or  THE 


VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSIS8IPPL 


B  O  0  K  I. 

EARLY  EXPLORATIONS  OF  THE  SPANIARDS  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF 

THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


CHAPTER  I. 

FIRST  SPANISH  DISCOVERIES  IN  FLORIDA. — A.D.  1512  TO  1538. 

Argument. — The  former  nndefined  Extent  of  Florida. — Spirit  of  Enterprise  and  Dis- 
covery awakened  in  Europe  by  Spanish  Conquests  in  the  West  Indies,  Mexico,  and 
Peru. — The  romantic  and  unfortunate  Expedition  of  Fence  de  Leon  into  East  Flor- 
ida.— The  Expedition  and  Disasters  of  Vasqnez  de  Ayllon ;  his  Avarice,  Cruelty,  and 
Death. — The  disastrous  Expedition  of  Pamphilo  de  Narvaez. — Preparations  for  the 
great  and  chivalrous  Expedition,  under  Hernando  de  Soto,  for  the  Conquest  of  Flor- 
ida.— The  Nature  and  Extent  of  this  Enterprise. — De  Soto's  commanding  Person 
and  Iniluence. — The  Expedition  sails  from  Spain  for  the  West  Indies. — Other  Ar- 
rangements and  Preparations  completed. — The  Expedition  sails  from  Havana,  and 
arrives  at  the  Bay  of  Espiritn  Santo  late  in  May,  1539,  A.D. — A  Synopsis  of  the 
Marches,  Disasters,  and  Fate  of  the  Expedition. 

[A.D.  1512.]  In  the  first  explorations  of  North  America, 
Florida,  as  originally  claimed  by  Spain,  comprised  all  that  por- 
tion of  the  present  territory  of  the  United  States  which  lies 
south  of  the  state  of  New  York.  At  a  later  period,  until  the 
French  discovered  Canada,  and  the  pilgrims  settled  in  New 
England,  it  comprised  all  that  portion  of  the  United  States 
south  of  the  present  state  of  Virginia,  or  south  of  the  parallel 
of  latitude  36°  30'  north,  and  extending  westward  to  the  Span- 
ish possessions  of  Mexico.  These  limits  were  successively  re- 
stricted by  other  European  powers,  until  Florida,  early  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  comprised  only  a  narrow  strip  of  sea-coast 
on  the  northeast  side  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  chiefly  south  of 

Vol.  I.— a 


2 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


i 


latitude  31°  north,  and  east  of  the  Perdido  River  and  Bay,  and 
including  the  peninsula  of  East  Florida.* 

Within  thirty  years  after  the  first  discovery  of  America  by 
Columbus,  nearly  all  the  great  West  India  Islands,  as  well  as 
the  isthmus  between  North  and  South  America,  known  as  the 
Spanish  Main,  were  explored  and  conquered  by  the  Spaniards ; 
yet,  in  that  part  of  the  Continent  north  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
few  and  imperfect  discoveries  had  been  made.  During  the 
early  part  of  the  sixteenth  century,  or  between  the  years  1510 
and  1540,  numerous  attempts  had  been  made  to  explore,  and 
some  expeditions  had  been  fitted  out  to  conquer,  the  country 
lying  east  and  north  of  the  Mexican  Gulf;  but  they  had  been 
disastrous  and  fruitless. 

These  expeditions  generally  set  sail  from  Cuba,  Hispaniola, 
or  some  of  the  larger  islands,  and,  proceeding  in  a  northward 
direction,  touched  upon  the  Bahama  Isles,  and  upon  the  east- 
ern coast  of  what  is  now  East  Florida,  Georgia,  and  South 
Carolina.    The  islands  were  populous  and  wealthy,  while  the 
country  north  of  the  Mexican  Gulf  was  an  immense  wilder- 
ness, inhabited  only  by  a  few  scattering  and  hostile  savages. 
Yet  the  belief  obtained  among  the  Spaniards  that  in  the  interi- 
or of  this  vast  region  there  existed  great  and  powerful  empires, 
far  more  wealthy  than  those  of  Mexico  and  Peru.     Those  who 
had  shared  in  the  plunder  of  the  latter  countries,  sighed  for  the 
still  richer  plunder  which  they  believed  to  exist  in  Florida.! 
This  belief  was  confirmed  by  the  most  incredible  stories,  told 
by  navigators  who,  at  different  times,  had  touched  upon  those 
shores.     Every  disaster  on  that  coast,  and  every  failure  of  a 
new  expedition,  only  served  to  inflame  their  avarice,  and  stim- 
ulate their  spirit  for  adventure  and  wild  enterprise.    In  Spain 
the  enthusiasm  of  all  classes  for  discovery  and  conquest  was 
unbounded.    In  the  beautiful  language  of  Theodore  Irving, 
"  Never  was  the  spirit  of  wild  adventure  more  universally  dif- 
fused than  at  the  dawn  of  the  sixteenth  century.     The  won- 

*  See  book  i.,  chapter  v.,  for  the  "  Extent  and  Boundaries,  &e.,  of  Florida." 
t  See  Irving's  Conqnest  of  Florida.  Thii  ia  an  interesting  work,  in  two  vols.,  ISimo, 
written  by  Theodore  Irving.  It  is  handsomely  devised  and  compiled  from  Spanish  his- 
torians, and  written  in  a  most  beautiful  style.  It  treats  chiefly  of  the  explorations  and 
adventures  ot  Hernando  de  Soto,  and  his  gallant  band  of  cavaliers,  who  overrun  Flori- 
da, as  known  at  that  time,  betwce  .  .h(>  years  1539  and  1S43.  It  u  compiled  from  the 
narrative  of  the  Inca  Garcilaso  '<  la  V  ega,  and  others.  Many  portions  of  the  narrative 
nay  appear  like  romance,  but  the  adventure!  of  De  Soto  were  only  romance  acted  out 
in  real  life.    See  vol.  i,  chap.  L  and  iL 


;,vt 


BOOK  I. 

Ely,  and 

rica  by 
well  aa 
I  as  the 
niards ; 
Mexico, 
ing  the 
rs  1510 
•re,  and 
jountry 
id  been 

paniola, 
•thward 
he  east- 
1  South 
hile  the 
wilder- 
savages. 
e  interi- 
mpires, 
ose  who 
or  the 
orida.t 
ies,  told 
>n  those 
e  of  a 
id  stim- 
Spain 
est  was 
Irving, 
ally  dif- 
le  won- 


rols.,  13mo, 
panish  his- 
ationa  and 
iTun  Flori- 
d  from  the 
narrative 
acted  oat 


m 


,M 


A.D.  1512.]  VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI.  8 

drous  discoveries  of  Columbus  and  his  hardy  companions  and 
followers,  the  descriptions  of  beautiful  summer  isles  of  the 
west,  and  the  tales  of  unexplored  regions  of  wealth,  locked  up 
in  an  unbounded  wilderness,  had  an  effect  upon  the  imagina- 
tions of  the  young  and  adventurous,  not  unlike  the  preaching 
of  the  chivalric  crusades  for  the  recovery  of  the  Holy  Sepul- 
cher.  The  gallant  knight,  the  servile  retainer,  the  soldier  of 
fortune,  the  hooded  friar,  the  pains-taking  mechanic,  the  toilful 
husbandman,  the  loose  profligate,  and  the  hardy  mariner,  all 
were  touched  with  the  pervading  passion ;  all  left  home,  coun- 
try, friends,  wives,  children,  lovers,  to  seek  some  imaginary  El- 
dorado, confidently  expecting  to  return  with  countless  treas- 
ure." 

Fired  with  this  enthusiasm,  Spain  and  Portugal  sent  forth  a 
continued  succession  of  fleets  and  armies,  led  on  by  the  proud- 
est soldiers  of  the  age.  Every  island  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
and  in  the  Caribbean  Sea,  as  \^ell  as  Mexico,  Peru,  and  Gua- 
timala,  were  speedily  explored,  overrun,  and  plundered  by  their 
warlike  and  avaricious  soldiers.  The  natives  were  consigned 
to  every  species  of  extortion,  suflering,  and  cruel  deaths,  or  to 
an  ignominious  slavery,  worse  to  them  than  death  itself.  The 
immense  riches  accumulated  by  those  who  led  on  these  con- 
quests were  such  as  to  constrain  belief  in  the  most  incredible 
tales  of  other  lands.  This  state  of  mind  prepared  those  of  ar- 
dent and  enthusiastic  temperaments  to  receive  as  true  the  most 
extravagant  tales  of  the  unbounded  wealth  of  the  interior  of 
Florida ;  while  the  dangers  of  the  coast,  and  the  terrible  hos- 
tility of  the  natives,  only  served  to  confirm  them  in  the  belief 
of  the  immense  wealth  of  that  country,  which  was  so  strongly 
guarded  by  nature  and  so  resolutely  defended  by  man.  The 
fortunate  adventurer  who  had  amassed  unbounded  wealth  in 
Mexico  and  Peru,  sighed  for  the  transcendent  riches  of  Flori- 
da. This  delusion  was  not  cured  by  twenty-five  years  of  sub- 
sequent disaster  and  disappointment.  The  conquerors  of 
Mexico  and  Peru  vainly  dreamed  of  new  laurels  to  be  gained 
in  the  wilds  of  Florida.  Such  was  the  state  of  feeling,  and 
such  the  enthusiasm,  which  led  to  the  disastrous  attempts  to 
explore  and  conquer  a  country  which,  until  near  the  middle 
of  the  nineteenth  century,  was  still  in  the  possession  of  the  in- 
domitable savages.* 

*  The  Indians  were  removed  by  the  government  of  the  United  States,  but  not  until 


i 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


The  following  are  some  of  the  principal  expeditions  prepar- 
ed find  sent  to  these  ill-fated  shores  in  the  first  half  of  the  six- 
teenth century. 

1.  The  Expedition  of  Ponce  De  Leon. — The  first  adven- 
turer who  discovered  the  coast  of  Florida  was  Ponce  de 
Leon,  formerly  a  companion  of  Columbus,  ex-governor  of 
Porto  Rico,  and  a  gallant  soldier  of  fortune.  He  sailed  from 
Porto  Rico  on  the  3d  of  March,  1512,  upon  a  chimerical 
cruise,  in  search  of  the  Fountain  of  Youth,  whose  waters,  it 
was  said,  possessed  the  property  of  perpetuating  youth  beyond 
the  power  of  time  and  disease.  The  Indian  tradition  placed 
this  fountain  in  one  of  the  Bahama  Islands.  After  a  long  cruise 
in  search  of  the  island  which  contained  the  healing  waters,  he 
at  length  came  upon  the  coast  of  a  country  of  vast  and  un- 
known extent,  which  he  supposed  to  be  a  large  island.  Land 
was  seen  on  Palm  Sunday  (Pascha  Florida),  the  27th  of  March. 
From  this  circumstance,  as  well  as  the  appearance  of  the  forest, 
which  was  in  full  bloom,  and  brilliant  with  flowers,  he  called 
it  Florida.  The  coast  was  dangerous  and  the  weather  tem- 
pestuous, and  for  many  days  he  was  compelled  to  avoid  the 
shore.  At  length  he  effected  a  landing,  which  proved  to  be 
the  east  coast  of  Florida,  a  few  miles  north  of  the  present  site 
of  St.  Augustine.  Having  explored  the  dangerous  and  un- 
known shore  and  channels  in  the  vicinity,  and  southward  among 
the  Bahama  Islands,  he  returned  to  Porto  Rico.  Here  he  still 
burned  with  the  desire  of  exploring  and  conquering  his  newly- 
discovered  country.  After  a  lapse  of  several  years,  and  vari- 
ous delays,  he  received  authority  from  the  Emperor  Charles  V. 
to  sail  to  Florida  as  the  governor  thereof,  with  the  task  of  col- 
onizing it,  as  the  reward  for  his  discovery,  and  other  former 
services. 

At  length,  in  the  year  1512,  he  set  sail  for  Florida  with  two 
ships,  to  select  a  site  for  his  new  colony,  and  for  the  seat  of  his 
government.  Where  he  landed  is  not  known,  but  most  prob- 
ably somewhere  in  the  vicinity  of  St.  Augustine.  Here  he  was 
soon  attacked  by  the  natives  with  the  most  implacable  fury. 
Many  of  the  Spaniards  were  killed  ;  the  remainder  were  driven 
to  their  vessels  for  safety.    Among  the  latter  was  Ponce  de 

the  year  1842,  three  bnndred  and  three  years  after  the  invasion  hy  De  Soto.  The  Flor- 
ida Indians  were  known  in  the  nineteenth  century  as  the  "Seminoles"  in  East  Flori- 
da, and  the  "  Mogkhogees"  in  Northern  Florida,  and  in  the  southern  and  western  parts 
of  Georgia. 


4 


BOOK  I. 

prepar- 
he  six- 

adven- 
nce  de 
•nor  of 
sd  from 
merical 
aters,  it 
beyond 
1  placed 
g  cruise 
iters,  he 
and  un- 
Land 
F  March, 
le  forest, 
le  called 
ler  tem- 
void  the 
ed  to  be 
sent  site 
and  un- 
d  among 
he  still 
newly- 
nd  vari- 
larles  V. 
i  of  col- 
former 

vith  two 
at  of  his 
)st  prob- 
hewas 
le  fury, 
e  driven 
once  de 

The  Flor- 
East  Flori- 
iBtern  parts 


A.D.  1620.] 


VALLEY    OP   TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


Leon,  mortally  wounded  by  an  Indian  arrow.  He  returned 
with  the  wreck  of  his  expedition  to  Cuba,  where  he  shortly  af- 
terward died.  As  the  eloquent  Bancroft  remarks,  "  So  ended 
the  adventurer  who  had  coveted  immeasurable  wealth,  and  had 
hoped  for  perpetual  youth.  The  discoverer  of  Florida  had  de- 
sired immortality  on  earth,  and  gained  only  its  shadow."* 

[A.D.  1520.]  2.  Expedition  of  Vasquez  de  Ayllon. — While 
the  conquest  of  the  islands  and  Mexico  was  progressing,  the 
rich  mines  discovered  required  numerous  able  hands  to  bring 
forth  the  precious  metals.  For  this  purpose,  it  was  proposed 
to  capture  as  many  of  the  hardy  natives  of  the  islands  and  of 
Florida  as  might  be  requisite  to  supply  the  demand  of  the  mines 
with  slaves.  For  this  purpose,  some  wealthy  miners  fitted  out 
a  fleet  of  two  vessels  under  Vasquez  de  Ayllon,  in  the  year 
1520,  to  cruise  among  the  islands  in  quest  of  Indian  slaves. 
This  expedition  reached  the  eastern  coast  of  Florida,  a  little 
north  of  the  first  landing  of  Ponce  de  Leon,  where  the  vessels 
were  anchored  in  a  river,  in  latitude  32°  north,  in  a  country 
called  by  the  natives  Chicorea.  The  river  was  called  Jordan, 
and  is  probably  the  same  now  called  the  Savannah,  or,  as  some 
think,  the  Combahee,  in  South  Carolina.  At  this  place  Europ- 
eans were  unknown  to  the  natives,  who  admired  the  fair  skins, 
the  long  beards,  the  splendid  clothing,  and  the  brilliant  armor, 
no  less  than  the  huge  vessels  in  which  they  came.  But  they 
fled  in  terror  to  their  forests.  The  Spaniards  soon  dispelled 
their  fears,  and  enticed  them  on  board  the  vessels,  where  they 
traded  beads  and  trinkets  for  marten  skins,  pearl,  and  some 
gold  and  silver.  While  on  board,  the  unsuspecting  Indians 
thronged  the  decks,  gazing  with  admiration  on  every  thing 
around  them.  As  soon  as  a  suflicient  number  had  been  enticed 
below  the  decks,  the  perfidious  Spaniards  closed  the  hatches, 
and  made  all  sail  for  St.  Domingo.  Husbands  were  torn  from 
their  wives,  parents  from  their  children.  Storms  arose  on  the 
voyage ;  they  were  overtaken  by  disasters,  and  one  vessel,  with 
all  on  board,  was  lost :  the  other  arrived  safe.  But  the  Indians 
on  board  remained  sullen  and  gloomy ;  and,  refusing  all  food, 
most  of  them  died  of  famine  and  melancholy. 

This  enterprise  only  stimulated  the  cupidity  of  Vasquez  de 
Ayllon  to  further  outrages.  He  repaired  to  Spain,  and  sought 
from  the  emperor  the  government  of  Chicorea,  with  authority 

*  Hist,  of  United  States,  vol.  i. 


6 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book 


to  subdue  it  by  conquest.  He  obtained  his  request,  and  wasted 
his  whole  fortune  in  the  preparation  of  his  fleet  and  troops. 
[A.D.  1525.]  He  arrived  in  the  mouth  of  the  Jordan,  with  his 
fleet,  in  the  year  1525,  but  soon  his  largest  ship  was  stranded 
and  lost.  The  natives,  fired  with  revenge  for  former  wrongs, 
meditated  the  entire  destruction  of  their  invaders.  They  dis- 
sembled their  resentment,  and,  by  acts  of  hospitality  and  friend- 
ship, gained  the  confidence  of  the  Spaniards,  who  hoped  former 
wrongs  were  forgotten.  Vasquez  was  completely  deceived, 
and  believed  -the  country  already  subdued  to  his  sway.  The 
natives  invited  the  Spaniards  to  visit  their  village,  nine  miles 
distant,  for  festive  entertainment.  They  accepted  the  invita- 
tion, and  Vasquez  permitted  two  hundred  of  his  men  to  visit 
the  village,  while  he  remained  with  a  small  force  to  guard  the 
ships.  The  natives  entertained  their  guests  with  feasting  and 
mirth  for  three  days,  until  they  were  placed  completely  oflf 
their  guard.  That  night  the  Indians  arose  upon  them  and 
massacred  every  soul.  Ai  daybreak  they  repaired  to  the  har- 
bor, and  surprised  Vasquez  and  his  handful  of  guards.  Only 
a  few  of  them  escaped  to  the  ships,  wounded  and  dismayed, 
and  with  all  speed  hastened  back  to  St.  Domingo.  According 
to  some  accounts,  Vasquez  remained  among  the  slain ;  accord- 
ing to  others,  he  returned  among  the  wounded  to  St.  Domingo, 
where  mortified  pride,  and  the  ruin  of  his  fortune,  hurried  him, 
broken-hearted,  to  his  grave.  Thus  signally  were  the  natives 
of  Chicorea  aveiiged  upon  their  cruel  and  perfidious  enemies.* 
[A.D.  1528.]  3.  Expedition  of  Pamphilo  de  Narvaex. — Dis- 
asters from  heaven,  and  hostility  from  men,  were  insuflicient  to 
deter  the  Spaniards  from  attempting  the  conquest  of  Florida. 
They  still  believed  the  interior  was  far  more  wealthy  than 
Mexico.  The  next  important  expedition  was  conducted  by 
Pamphilo  de  Narvaez,  a  man  of  no  great  prudence  or  reputa- 
tion for  virtue.  He  was  authorized  to  subdue  the  country, 
over  which  he  was  appointed  governor,  with  the  title  of  ade- 
lantado,  or  commander-in-chief.  His  authority  extended  over 
all  the  country  of  Florida,  from  Cape  Sable  as  far  as  the  River 
of  Palms,  probably  the  Colorado  in  the  west  of  Texas.  He  at 
length  equipped  his  fleet  of  four  ships,  and  a  strong  military 
force  of  four  hundred  foot  and  eighty  horse :  with  this  com- 
plement he  set  sail  from  Cuba  in  March,  and  on  the  12th  of 

*  Conqneat  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  13-15. 


VAtI,«Y  cm  TUB      (fMISSlPPI. 


% 


A.D.  1528.] 

April  he  anchored  in  uo  open  ba,  in  East  Flimda,  cnlled  JH 
Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo,  the  modern  Tarrt|>.,  ^y.  H  ng  bit 
some  of  his  men  by  desertion  among  th  islands,  jod  some 
of  his  horses  in  a  storm,  he  landed  his  fo,  is  for  tlit  conquest 
of  the  country,  amounting  to  three  hundrcl  men  and  forty-five 
horses.  He  then  formally  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the 
name  of  his  imperial  master,  and  explored  the  region  in  the 
vicinity.  Having  found  it  barren,  and  but  thinly  inhabited,  he 
determined  to  penetrate  northwardly  into  the  interior,  in  quest 
of  some  populous  and  wealthy  empire  like  Mexico  or  Peru. 
The  fleet  was  directed  to  seek  some  safe  harbor  and  await  his 
return,  or  to  proceed  to  Havana  and  bring  new  supplies  for 
the  army.  With  these  arrangements  he  plunged  into  the 
depths  of  an  unknown  and  savage  wilderness,  blinded  against 
the  danger  by  the  delusive  hope  of  conquest  and  riches.  At 
first  he  passed  through  an  inhabited  country,  with  fields  of 
maize ;  afterward,  for  many  days,  they  journeyed  through  des- 
ert solitudes,  and  often  suffered  the  extremes  of  hunger,  of  ex- 
posure, and  of  despair.  They  crossed  rapid  rivers,  on  rafts 
and  by  swimming,  exposed  to  frequent  attacks  from  hordes  of 
lurking  savages.  Their  extreme  cruelty  to  the  Indians  who 
fell  into  their  hands  secured  to  them  the  most  implacable  hos- 
tility. Some  of  their  captives  were  compelled  to  act  as  guides ; 
but  they  led  the  invaders  through  swamps  and  forests,  through 
matted  thickets  and  fallen  trees,  until  their  souls  sickened  at 
the  idea  of  proceeding  further.  They  were  thus  led  on  for 
many  days  by  their  treacherous  and  vindictive  guides,  who 
sought  to  bewilder  them,  and  lead  them  beyond  their  own  ter- 
ritory. Yet  they  were  urged  on  by  the  hope  of  reaching  the 
rich  country,  which,  the  guides  declared,  was  still  far  ahead. 
This  was  the  Appalachee  country,  which  lay,  probably,  west 
of  the  head  streams  of  the  Suwanee  River,  in  Georgia,  between 
the  Alapahaw  and  the  Withlacoochy  Rivers,  and  east  of  Flint 
River.  This  country  was  represented  by  the  Indians  as 
abounding  in  gold,  and  toward  this  the  weary  Spaniards  bent 
their  eager  way.  At  length  they  arrived  at  the  long-sought 
country,  and  in  sight  of  the  chief  town ;  but,  instead  of  a  great 
city  like  Mexico,  Narvaez  was  chagrined  to  find  only  a  village 
of  two  hundred  and  forty  huts  and  sheds.  The  natives  fled  at 
their  approach,  and  with  them,  for  a  time,  fled  the  delusion  of 
gold.    The  Spaniards  remained  twenty-five  days  in  the  village, 


lirSTOBY   OP  TUB 


[lOOK   I. 


and  were  compelled  to  forage  and  plunder  the  country  for  8ub> 
■istence  ;  but  they  were  harassed  day  and  night,  and  numbers 
were  cut  off  by  the  warlike  natives,  until  despair  began  to 
brood  over  them.  They  now  became  more  anxious  for  food 
than  for  gold  ;  and  the  captives  directed  them  southward,  tu 
the  village  of  Aut6,  near  the  sea,  where  they  represented  the 
country  as  abounding  in  corn,  vegetables,  and  fish,  and  the  na- 
tives as  peaceable  and  kind.  This  was  distant  nine  days' 
march,  and  thither  they  turned  their  weary  course.  They 
were  led  through  dismal  swamps  with  deep  lagoons,  with  the 
water  often  up  to  their  breasts,  the  passage  frequently  obstruct- 
ed  by  fallen  timber,  and  beset  with  hordes  of  hostile  and  fierce 
savages.  These  were  armed  with  bows  of  an  enormous  size, 
and  hung  continually  upon  their  flanks  and  rear.  At  length, 
after  incredible  difficulties,  they  reached  the  village  of  Aut6, 
which  was  deserted  and  burned  by  the  natives  at  their  ap- 
proach. Some  corn,  however,  remained,  and  this  was  more 
acceptable  than  gold.  They  were  now  within  a  day's  march 
of  the  sea,  probably  in  the  vicinity  of  the  present  site  of  St. 
Mark's ;  their  numbers  were  greatly  reduced  by  disease,  by 
privation,  and  by  the  savages.  Only  two  thirds  of  their  orig- 
inal number  survived,  and  many  of  those  were  now  ill,  and  dis- 
ease was  daily  spreading  among  them.  They  had  now  trav- 
eled eight  hundred  miles  of  dismal  wilderness  from  the  point 
of  their  disembarkation,  and  knew  not  the  part  of  the  gulf  upon 
which  they  had  now  arrived.  Their  hopes  of  conquest  and 
wealth  were  at  an  end,  and  to  retrace  their  steps  in  search 
of  their  ships  would  only  be  to  hazard  the  lives  of  all  the  sur- 
vivors. Having  discovered  an  inlet  one  day's  march  from 
Aute,  they  determined  to  encamp  there  until  they  could  con- 
struct a  few  rude  barques,  in  which  they  might  coast  around  in 
search  of  their  ships.  Desperation  drove  them  to  invention.  A 
rude  bellows  and  forge  were  constructed,  and  all  the  iron  im- 
plements of  every  kind,  even  to  their  stirrups  and  spurs,  were 
converted  into  nails,  hatchets,  and  saws.  Their  shirts  were 
made  into  sails,  and  cordage  was  made  from  palm  bark  and 
horse  hair.  They  made  pitch  of  pine  rosin,  and  oakum  of  palm 
bark.  Every  man  able  to  work  joined  in  building  the  frail 
vessels ;  a  horse  was  killed  every  three  days  for  the  laborers 
and  the  sick. 
At  length,  after  great  exertion,  they  completed  five  vessels 


i 

1 


■fej 


ron  im- 
Is,  were 
Is  were 
Irk  and 
>f  palm 
\e  frail 
iborers 

ressels 


A.D.  1598.]  VALLBY   OF  TUB   MIBSIBSIfPl.  • 

and  embarked  on  the  22d  of  September,  1628,  crowding  their 
gunwales  almost  to  the  water's  edge.  They  coasted  along 
the  unexplored  shore  for  many  days,  suffering  both  with  hun- 
ger and  sickness.  They  were  driven  by  storms  on  the  water, 
and  assailed  by  savages  when  they  approached  land,  until 
they  became  wild  and  desperate.  A  storm  sprung  up  in  the 
night,  and  three  vessels  were  dispersed  and  wrecked :  only 
two  remained.  In  one  of  these  was  Narvaez  himself.  After 
coasting  the  shore  round  for  many  days  in  the  most  forlorn 
condition,  he  landed,  and  sent  all  his  men  ashore  in  search  of 
provisions,  retaining  with  him  only  one  sailor  and  a  sick  page. 
While  they  were  on  shore  a  severe  gale  sprang  up  from  the 
north,  and  his  vessel,  without  food  or  water,  was  driven  out  to 
sea,  and  never  heard  of  afterward.  Thus  this  ill-fated  man 
reaped  only  suffering  and  privation,  poverty  and  death,  where 
he  expected  wealth,  conquest,  and  glory ;  while  the  country  of 
Florida,  which  he  was  to  subdue  and  colonize,  remained  as  in- 
hospitable and  unknown  as  before. 

Out  of  the  whole  number  who  landed  at  the  Bay  of  Espiritu 
Santo  for  this  expedition,  only  five  escaped,  Alvar  Nunez  Ca- 
bexa  de  Vaca,  and  four  of  his  companions.  They  were  in 
the  other  barque  that  remained  after  the  night  storm,  and  were 
afterward  cast  upon  the  inhospitable  shore ;  and,  as  Mr.  Irving 
observes,  "  After  the  most  singular  and  unparalleled  hardships, 
they  traversed  the  northern  parts  of  Florida,  crossed  the  Mis- 
sissippi, the  desert  mountainous  regions  on  the  confines  of 
Texas  and  the  Rocky  Mountains,  passing  from  tribe  to  tribe 
of  Indians,  and  often  as  slaves,  until,  at  the  end  of  several  years, 
they  succeeded  in  reaching  the  Spanish  settlement  of  Com- 
postella.  From  thence  Alvar  Nunez  proceeded  to  Mexico, 
and  ultimately  arrived  at  Lisbon  in  1537,  nearly  ten  years 
after  his  embarkation  with  Pamphilo  de  Narvaez."  The  re- 
mainder of  the  crew,  left  on  shore  when  Narvaez's  barque  was 
blown  out  to  sea,  were  never  heard  of,  and,  in  all  probability, 
perished  with  hunger  and  by  savage  vengeance.* 

Strange  as  it  may  appear,  Alvar  Nunez  and  his  companions, 
after  their  forlorn  wanderings  and  privations,  and  return  to 
Europe,  persisted  in  declaring  Florida  the  richest  country  in 
the  world;  and  their  romantic  narrations  had  the  effect  of 
still  keeping  alive  the  spirit  of  adventure  for  the  conquest  of 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  16-23. 


10 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


a  country  so  much  richer  than  Mexico.  Encouraged  by  these 
declarations,  a  new  and  more  extensive  expedition  was  set  on 
foot,  during  the  following  year,  under  Hernando  de  Soto,  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  and  wealthy  cavaliers  of  that  age. 
De  Soto  had  been  a  companion  of  Pizarro  in  the  conquest  of 
Peru,  where  he  had  amassed  an  immense  fortune,  and  had 
won  the  most  distinguished  honors  in  the  field  of  battle  for  his 
valor  and  his  heroic  achievements.  Descended  of  noble  blood, 
he  maintained  all  the  pomp  and  retinue  of  a  Spanish  nobleman 
of  that  day ;  his  fame  in  the  conquest  of  Peru  had  gained  him 
a  favorable  standing  with  the  Emperor  Charles  V.,  and  he  ap- 
peared at  court  with  great  pomp  and  splendor. 

Fired  with  the  enthusiasm  which  he  had  contributed  to  in- 
spire, Alvar  Nunez  determined  to  join  the  contemplated  ex- 
pedition, and  again  to  enter  upon  the  conquest  of  Florida.  A 
few  months  sufficed  to  light  up  all  Spain  with  the  enthusiasm 
of  the  enterprise. 

The  history  of  this  expedition  contains  so  much  of  romance 
and  adventure,  that  it  can  hardly  be  believed  by  some  as  se- 
rious matter  of  fact.  Yet  this  expedition  for  gold  and  conquest 
was  unquestionably  made ;  and  it  affords  a  sad  proof  of  the 
proneness  of  human  nature,  under  certain  circumstances,  to  be 
carried  away  by  the  enthusiasm  of  the  times,  as  if  in  expec- 
tation that  the  laws  of  nature,  in  the  physical  as  well  as  the 
moral  world,  would  be  changed  or  subverted  to  subserve  the 
imaginary  wants  of  man. 

Of  all  the  enterprises  undertaken  in  the  spirit  of  wild  ad- 
venture, none  has  surpassed,  for  hardihood  and  variety  of  in- 
cident, that  of  the  renowned  Hernando  de  Soto  and  his  band 
of  cavaliers.  As  Mr.  Irving  observes, "  It  was  poetry  put  into 
action ;  it  was  the  knight-errantry  of  the  Old  World  carried 
into  the  depths  of  the  American  wilderness.  The  personal  ad- 
ventures, the  feats  of  individual  prowess,  the  picturesque  de- 
scriptions of  steel-clad  cavaliers  with  lance  and  helm,  and 
prancing  steed,  glittering  through  the  wildernesses  of  Florida, 
Georgia,  Alabama,  and  the  prairies  of  the  Far  West,  would  seem 
to  us  mere  fictions  of  romance,  did  they  not  come  to  us  in  the 
matter-of-fact  narratives  of  those  who  were  eye-witnesses,  and 
who  recorded  minute  memoranda  of  every  day's  incidents."* 

The  sixteenth  century  was  an  age  of  adventure,  and  all 

•  Conqaest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  24-36. 


4 


[book  I. 

[ed  by  these 
was  set  on 
e  Soto,  one 
>f  that  age. 
conquest  of 
te,  and  had 
attle  for  his 
loble  blood, 
h  nobleman 
gained  him 
,  and  he  ap- 

buted  to  in- 
nplated  ex- 
^'lorida.  A 
enthusiasm 

of  romance 
some  as  se- 
nd conquest 
)roof  of  the 
ances,  to  be 
f  in  expec- 
well  as  the 
ibserve  the 

wild  ad« 

riety  of  in- 

his  band 

ry  put  into 

d  carried 

rsonal  ad- 

resque  de- 

lelm,  and 

f  Florida, 

ould  seem 

us  in  the 

esses,  and 

idents."* 

and  all 


A.D.   1538.]  VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI.  11 

Europe  was  fired  with  the  enthusiasm  of  American  discovery 
and  conquest.  The  populous  islands  of  the  West  Indies,  and 
the  powerful  and  wealthy  empires  of  Mexico  and  Peru,  were 
early  subdued  and  plundered  of  their  immense  riches  by  small 
but  gallant  bands  of  Spaniards.  The  whole  of  Europe  re- 
sounded with  the  fame  of  Cortez  and  Pizarro,  and  those  who 
had  followed  their  standards  had  amassed  riches  and  honors 
without  number.  The  ambition  of  the  young  and  chivalrous 
was  inflamed  to  deeds  of  daring. 

[A.D.  1538.]  De  Soto  burned  with  ambition  to  signalize 
himself  equally  with  Cortez  and  Pizarro,  to  whose  fame  his 
was  only  inferior.  The  only  field  for  his  enterprise  was  the 
rich  and  powerful  countries  supposed  to  exist  in  the  interior 
of  Florida,  north  of  the  Mexican  Gulf.  This  country  was  still 
believed  to  abound  in  silver  and  gold,  and  to  be  extremely  fer- 
tile in  all  the  products  of  agriculture.  Several  expeditions 
had  formerly  failed  to  subdue  its  inhabitants  and  to  possess  its 
wealth :  but  chivalric  adventurers  were  still  ready  to  ente^  a 
crusade  again  into  these  regions  for  the  sake  of  gaining  wealth 
and  honors,  and  to  stake  their  lives  and  fortunes  on  the  issue. 
A  man  suitable  to  lead  and  command  such  an  expedition  was 
all  they  required.  De  Soto  was  in  every  way  qualified.  In 
fame  he  almost  equalled  the  conquerors  of  Mexico  and  Peru 
themselves ;  in  courage  and  perseverance  he  was  not  less.  He 
was  in  the  prime  of  manhood,  and  only  waited  some  fit  oppor- 
tunity to  signalize  himself,  and  hand  down  his  fame  to  pos- 
terity equally  brilliant  with  that  of  Cortez  and  Pizarro.  About 
this  time  Alvar  Nunez  returned  to  Spain,  with  the  tidings  of 
the  unfortunate  fate  of  Pamphilo  Narvaez  and  his  followers. 
All  the  vague  reports  of  the  immense  riches  and  fertility  of 
Florida,  which  had  been  greedily  received  and  accredited,  were 
confirmed  in  glowing  colors  by  Alvar  Nunez.  In  his  miracu- 
lous wanderings  through  the  country  for  many  years,  he  had 
explored  the  whole  region,  had  become  acquainted  with  the 
language,  customs,  and  resources  of  the  natives.  He  therefore 
would  be  the  most  valuable  acquisition  to  the  contemplated 
expedition. 

The  imagination  and  enthusiasm  of  De  Soto  took  fire  at  the 
glowing  representations  of  Alvar  Nunez,  and  he  determined 
to  lead  an  expedition  which  should  eclipse  the  fame  of  the 
great  captains  who  had  preceded  him,  and  yield  the  immense 


■^■4 


12 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


riches  which  he  so  much  coveted.  The  fate  of  all  former  ex- 
peditions to  that  inhospitable  land  only  served  to  stimulate  his 
ambition.  He  conceived  that  he  possessed  the  energy  and 
firmness  to  overcome  all  the  obstacles  and  dangers  which  had 
caused  the  failure  and  destruction  of  former  expeditions.  He 
believed,  too,  that  the  barren  coast,  and  the  fierce  hostility  of 
the  native  tribes,  were  only  so  many  obstacles  placed  by  na- 
ture to  protect  and  conceal  the  immense  riches  of  the  interior. 
De  Soto  accordingly  obtained  permission  and  authority  from 
the  Emperor  Charles  to  undertake  the  conquest  of  Florida  at 
his  own  risk  and  expense.  The  emperor  conferred  upon  him 
the  title  and  office  of  governor  and  captain-general  for  life  of 
Cuba  and  Florida.  In  the  country  of  Florida  which  he  should 
conquer  he  was  appointed  adelantado,  an  office  comprising  the 
whole  civil  and  military  authority,  with  a  marquesite,  and  an 
estate  in  the  country  of  thirty  leagues  in  length  and  fifteen  in 
breadth.  A  more  splendid  field  of  action,  and  a  brighter  pros- 
pect, presented  to  those  who  should  engage  in  this  expedition 
than  any  yet  undertaken  on  the  Continent.  De  Soto  himself 
was  transported  with  enthusiasm  in  the  cause,  and  his  enthu- 
siasm and  ardor  were  infused  into  all  about  him.  So  soon  as 
it  was  announced  that  Hernando  de  Soto,  one  of  the  conquer- 
ors of  Peru,  was  about  to  undertake  the  conquest  of  Florida, 
men  of  rank  and  wealth  were  foremost  in  oflfering  the  aid,  not 
only  of  their  personal  services,  but  also  of  their  money  and 
fortunes.  Soldiers  of  fortune,  who  had  served  with  distinction 
in  the  wars  against  the  Moors  as  well  as  in  distant  portions 
of  the  globe,  were  eager  to  join  his  standard  in  so  splendid 
an  undertaking.  Young  nobles,  ambitious  of  distinction  and 
wealth,  cavaliers  of  experience,  men  of  fortune,  all  volunteered 
in  the  intended  conquest :  some  sold  their  whole  estates  to  in- 
vest the  proceeds  in  equipments  for  the  expedition.  None 
were  more  liberal  in  their  contributions  than  De  Soto  himself, 
who  exhausted  his  whole  means  in  equipping  the  fleet,  and  in 
other  requisites  for  the  invasion.  A  troop  of  Portuguese  cav- 
aliers were  among  the  volunteers  for  the  enterprise ;  the  whole 
of  Spain  was  anxiously  looking  on  the  preparations  for  the  ex- 
pedition, and  all  was  a  brilliant  display  of  arms  and  wealth. 
The  number  who  presented  themselves  for  the  enterprise  was 
far  greater  than  could  be  received.  From  all  the  applicants 
De  Soto   selected  the  choicest  spirits  for  his  companions. 


^m 


[book  I. 

I  former  ex- 

itimulate  his 

energy  and 

9  which  had 

litions.     He 

hostility  of 

aced  by  na- 

the  interior. 

thority  from 

f  Florida  at 

id  upon  him 

il  for  life  of 

;h  he  should 

uprising  the 

site,  and  an 

id  fifteen  in 

ighter  pros- 

I  expedition 

oto  himself 

1  his  enthu- 

So  soon  as 

le  conquer- 

of  Florida, 

the  aid,  not 

money  and 

distinction 

nt  portions 

30  splendid 

nction  and 

olunteered 

tates  to  in- 

on.    None 

to  himself, 

eet,  and  in 

?uese  cav- 

the  whole 

~br  the  ex- 

id  wealth, 

•prise  was 

applicants 

mpanions. 


A.D. 


1538.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


13 


Many  of  the  aspirants  for  fame  and  wealth,  even  those  who 
had  sacrificed  their  estates  in  preparing  the  expedition,  were 
compelled  to  remain. 

After  nearly  fourteen  months  spent  in  preparation  for  this 
enterprise,  De  Soto  set  sail  from  Spain  on  the  6th  of  April, 
1538.  His  expedition  consisted  of  nine  hundred  and  fifty 
chosen  Spaniards  and  Portuguese.  A  more  gallant  band  had 
nevei  been  seen;  scarcely  one  with  gray  hairs  was  among 
them.  All  were  young  and  vigorous,  and  well  fitted  for  the 
toils,  hardships,  and  dangers  of  so  adventurous  an  undertaking. 
In  the  enterprise,  also,  were  enlisted  twelve  priests,  eight  cler- 
gymen of  inferior  rank,  and  four  monks,  most  of  them  being 
relatives  of  the  superior  officers.  This  magnificent  armament 
sailed  from  Spain  in  ten  vessels,  and  in  company  with  a  fleet 
of  twenty-six  sail,  bound  for  Mexico.  They  left  the  port  amid 
the  sounds  of  music,  the  blasts  of  trumpets,  and  the  roar  of 
artillery.* 

After  a  prosperous  voyage  of  near  seven  weeks,  the  expe- 
dition arrived  at  St.  Jago  de  Cuba  about  the  last  of  May. 
Their  arrival  spread  general  joy  and  rejoicing  throughout  the 
island,  and  for  several  days  it  was  one  scene  of  balls,  masquer- 
ades, tilting-matches,  buli-fights,  contests  of  skill  in  horseman- 
ship, and  other  chivalrous  amusements.  These  being  over, 
De  Soto  spent  three  months  in  a  tour  around  the  island,  visiting 
the  principal  towns,  and  appointing  officers  of  justice  to  rule 
in  his  absence.  Most  of  the  wealthy  cavaliers  were  likewise 
furnishing  themselves  with  the  choicest  horses  and  the  most 
splendid  trappings.  The  enthusiasm  which  prevailed  in  Spain 
spread  likewise  in  Cuba,  and  many  more  of  the  wealthy  and 
ambitious  joined  the  expedition,  and  aided  in  furnishing  every 
thing  necessary  for  conquest  and  comfort.  Late  in  August, 
the  governor,  De  Soto,  arrived  at  Havana,  where  he  was 
joined  by  his  family  and  all  his  troops.  He  continued  here, 
engaged  in  the  duties  of  his  station  as  governor,  for  several 
moiiths.  In  the  mean  time,  he  had  sent  a  brigantine,  manned 
with  picked  sailors  and  a  trusty  commander,  to  the  coast  of 
Florida,  in  search  of  a  safe  and  commodious  harbor,  to  which 
the  expedition  might  sail  direct  on  leaving  Cuba.  The  object 
of  this  mission  being  accomplished,  the  brigantine  returned, 
bringing  four  of  the  natives  of  Florida,  who  were  detained  to 

*  Irving's  Conqueit  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  35, 36. 


14 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  I. 


learn  the  Spanish  language,  for  the  purpose  of  being  employed 
as  guides  and  interpreters.  During  this  time  the  prepare  tions 
for  the  expedition  had  been  progressing  with  great  diligence, 
and  the  number  of  additional  volunteers  had  increased  the 
whole  force  to  one  thousand  men,  including  three  hundred  and 
fifty  horsemen,  besides  the  crews  of  the  ships ;  the  fleet  con- 
sisted of  eight  large  and  three  small  vessels. 

Every  thing  was  provided  that  could  possibly  be  necessary 
for  conquest  or  for  planting  colonies.  Artisans  in  wood  and 
iron ;  iron  in  abundance,  and  a  complete  set  of  forging  tools ; 
men  and  apparatus  for  assaying  gold  and  silver ;  a  whip-saw 
and  various  tools  for  working  in  wood ;  live  stock  of  different 
kinds,  including  three  hundred  head  of  swine  for  their  colony, 
as  well  as  food  on  their  march,  in  case  of  emergency.  Besides 
these,  they  provided  every  thing  which  the  experience  of  former 
expeditions  could  suggest,  or  avarice  and  cruelty  could  dictate. 
Not  only  priests  and  learned  men,  but  chemists  and  miners  to 
procure  and  assay  the  precious  metals.  Chains  and  fetters  for 
the  captives,  and  even  blood-hounds  to  assist  in  drawing  them 
from  their  hiding-places,  were  among  the  articles  provided  for 
the  conquest,  while  cards  were  supplied  to  amuse  their  leisure 
hours  or  to  gratify  their  love  of  gaming.  The  fighting  men 
were  completely  clad  in  steel  armor  glittering  with  gold ;  coats 
of  mail,  helmets,  breast-plates,  and  shields  for  defense ;  and 
lances,  broad-swords,  and  cimeters  for  offensive  warfare.  A 
few  were  armed  with  cross-bows,  and  eighteen  w4th  arque- 
buses ;  and  one  piece  of  ordnance  was  taken.  Fire-arms  were 
not  then  in  general  use ;  such  as  were  used  were  imperfect, 
compared  with  those  of  modern  times. 

Thus  provided  and  equipped,  the  expedition  set  sail  from 
Havana  on  the  12th  of  May,  1539,  as  gayly  as  if  it  had  been  an 
excursion  of  a  bridal  party.  Little  did  they  dream  of  the  dag- 
gers and  hardships  which  they  were  about  to  encounter.  In  a 
fortnight  the  fleet  arrived  in  the  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo,  which 
had  been  selected  before.  Here  they  cast  anchor  and  prepared 
to  disembark.* 

The  whole  was  a  roving  band  of  gallant  freebooters  in  quest 
of  plunder  and  of  fortune ;  an  army  rendered  cruel  and  fero- 
cious by  avarice,  and  ready  to  march  to  any  point  with  slaugh- 
ter where  they  might  suppose  an  Indian  village  was  stored  with 

*  Conqaeit  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  54. 


•■k;. 


[book  I. 

ng  employed 
prepart  tions 
!at  diligence, 
icreased  the 
hundred  and 
be  fleet  con- 

i)e  necessary 
in  wood  and 
►rging  tools ; 
a  whip-saw 
L  of  diflerent 
iheir  colony, 
■y.    Besides 
ice  of  former 
ould  dictate, 
id  miners  to 
d  fetters  for 
awing  them 
jrovided  for 
their  leisure 
ghtlng  men 
gold;  coats 
fense;  and 
warfare.     A 
vith  arque- 
arms  were 
imperfect, 

sail  from 
id  been  an 
)f  the  dau- 
iter.  In  a 
ito,  which 

prepared 

s  in  quest 
and  fero- 
h  slaugh- 
ored  with 


A.D.  1538.]  VALLEY   OP   THE    MI8SIS9IPPL  15 

gold  or  other  riches.  Stimulated  by  the  love  of  fame,  and  still 
more  by  the  love  of  gold,  they  plunged  into  the  savage  wilds 
of  East  Florida,  and  thence  northward  into  the  southwest  sec- 
tion of  Georgia,  through  the  country  of  the  Seminoles,  who 
were  as  warlike  and  ferocious  then  as  at  the  present  time. 
They  marched  and  wandered  for  the  first  year  in  East  Florida 
and  in  Georgia,  east  of  Flint  River,  continually  harassed  and 
cut  off  by  the  natives.  The  Indians  captured  for  guides  led 
them  through  dismal  forests  and  impassable  swamps  until  they 
reached  the  Appalachee  country,  where  they  spent  the  first 
winter,  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  north  of  St.  Mark's. 
The  next  year  they  traversed  the  State  of  Georgia  northeast- 
ward, and  north  of  the  Altamaha  River ;  thence  they  were  led 
northwestward,  in  search  of  gold,  to  the  barren  regions  of  the 
Cherokees ;  thence  down  the  valley  of  the  Coosa  River ;  and 
thence  southwestward,  down  the  Alabama  Valley  toward  its 
junction  with  the  Tombigby,  where  they  met  with  the  most 
terrible  disaster  from  a  desperate  attack  by  an  immense  Indian 
host,  in  which  many  were  killed,  and  nearly  all  their  baggage 
was  destroyed  by  fire.  From  UAs  they  marched  northward, 
or,  rather,  northwestward,  in  the  midst  of  winter,  and  spent 
the  remainder  of  their  second  winter  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
State  of  Mississippi,  near  the  Yalobusha,  or  Tallahatchy  River. 
During  the  winter  they  were  attacked  by  a  large  body  of  In- 
dians in  the  Chickasa  country,  and  again  burned  out.  In  this 
attack  many  were  killed,  and  nearly  every  thing  in  the  way 
of  clothing  and  armor  was  destroyed  by  fire.  Many  of  their 
horses  likewise  were  killed  or  burned  to  death.  The  hostile 
savages  harassed  them  incessantly  in  all  their  marches  and 
encampments,  and  every  day  diminished  the  numbers  of  this 
gallant  band.  They  next  bent  their  course  north  of  west,  until 
they  struck  the  Mississippi  River.  They  crossed  it,  and  ex- 
tended their  march  with  the  wreck  of  their  army  in  a  north- 
western direction  to  the  mountainous  region  north  of  the  Ar- 
kansas, where  they  spent  their  third  winter.  Thence  they  re- 
turned to  the  Mississippi,  where  De  Soto  died  from  disease 
brought  on  by  constant  hardships,  fatigue,  and  disappointed 
ambition.  The  remnant  of  the  army  again  set  out  westward 
in  hopes  of  reaching  Mexico ;  and  their  fourth  summer  was 
spent  in  traversing  the  regions  north  of  Red  River.  They 
finally  returned  to  the  Mississippi,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Ar- 


16 


HI8TOBY    OP   THE 


[book  I. 


kansas  River,  where  the  remnant  of  three  hundred  and  fifty 
men,  worn  down  with  privations,  hardships,  and  savage  war- 
fare in  hody,  and  depressed  in  mind  by  anxiety,  disappoint- 
ments, and  despair,  finally  constructed  rude  vessels,  and,  pur- 
sued by  hostile  Indians,  floated  down  the  Mississippi  to  the 
gulf;  and  thence  coasting  around  toward  Mexico,  only  two 
hundred  and  fifty  men  finally  reached  the  Spanish  settlements. 
During  the  whole  of  nearly  four  years,  while  they  were  in 
quest  of  gold  east  and  west  of  the  Mississippi,  their  sufferings 
were  indescribable.  They  encountered  one  continued  and 
successive  scene  of  privations,  toils,  dangers,  disasters,  and 
despair.  I  have  not  enumerated  sickness  and  death  among 
their  sufferings,  for  these  were  the  only  comforts  to  their  spir- 
its, which  sickened  at  the  very  thoughts  of  life. 


CHAPTER  II. 

INVASION  OF  FLORIDA  BY  HERNANDO  DE  SOTO. A.D.  1539  TO  1540. 

Argument. — The  Spanish  Expedition  at  the  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo.— Disasters  com- 
mence.— De  Soto  invades  the  Territory  of  Hirihigna. — Invades  the  Territories  of 
Acuera;  of  Ocali;  of  Vitachuco.  —  Invades  Osachile;  the  Cacique's  Castle  upon 
a  fortified  Mound. — Invasion  of  Appalache. — The  Expedition  winters  in  Appalach^. 
— Various  Incidents  while  here. — The  Expedition  marches  in  the  Spring  toward 
Western  Georgia. — Invasion  of  the  Territories  of  Copafi. — Capture  of  the  Cacique. 
— His  Person  and  Character. — His  miraculous  Escape. — Invasion  of  the  Territory  of 
Cofachiqui. — De  Soto's  Disappointment  at  the  Poverty  of  the  Natives. — Captures  a 
dueen  Regent. — Detains  her  as  a  Hostage,  and  carries  her  Westward  in  his  March. 
— She  effects  her  Escape  near  the  eastern  Limits  of  the  Cherokee  Country. — The  Ex- 
pedition upon  the  Sources  of  the  Chattahoochy  River. — Arrives  on  the  head  Waters 
of  the  Coosa  River. 

[A.D.  1539.]  De  Soto  in  East  Florida. — The  splendid  ex- 
pedition under  De  Soto  arrived  in  the  bay  of  Espiritu  Santo 
on  the  25th  of  May.  As  the  fleet  approached  the  coast,  the 
Spaniards  beheld  the  shore  lighted  up  with  alarm  fires  of  the 
natives,  who  had  perceived  their  approach ;  but  as  it  entered 
the  bay  the  Indians  disappeared,  and  not  one  was  seen  lor  sev- 
eral days.  These  circumstances  excited  suspicion  in  the  mind 
of  De  Soto,  and  caused  him  to  be  extremely  cautious  in  his 
movements.  After  four  days  of  delay  and  observation,  he  land- 
ed a  body  of  three  hundred  men,  most  probably  on  the  shore 


•V^l 


*% 


[book  I. 

and  fifty 
age  war- 
sappoint- 
and,  pur- 
pi  to  the 
only  two 
ttlements. 
'  were  in 
sufferings 
nued  and 
sters,  and 
th  among 
their  spir- 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


17 


9  TO  1540. 

)i8astcrs  corn- 
Territories  of 
g  Castle  upon 
in  Appalacli^. 
pring  toward 
tlie  Cacique. 
e  Territory  of 
, — Captures  a 
in  his  Marcb. 
,  .—The  Ex- 
head  Waters 


lendid  ex- 

hitu  Santo 

(coast,  the 

res  of  the 

[t  entered 

In  ior  sev- 

i  the  mind 

ius  in  his 

I,  he  land- 

the  shore 


M 


«?i 


A.D.  1539.] 

of  thrit  portion  of  the  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo  known  as  Hillsbor- 
ough Bay.  Here,  with  great  pomp,  he  formally  took  possession 
of  the  country  in  the  name  of  his  imperial  master,  Charles  V. ; 
after  which  the  detachment,  in  the  joyful  expectation  of  con- 
quest i;ind  riches,  encamped  for  the  night  in  a  state  of  careless 
security.  Next  morning,  just  before  the  dawn  of  day,  the  In- 
dians, who  had  been  secretly  observing  all  their  movements, 
assaulted  the  camp  in  vast  numbers  and  with  terrific  yells. 
Unacquainted  with  such  warfare,  the  whole  detachment,  pan- 
ic-stricken, fled  in  great  confusion  toward  the  shipping.  Many 
were  wounded  by  arrows,  and  some  were  killed  before  they 
could  reach  the  vessels.  The  Indians  having  dispersed,  De 
Soto  soon  afterward  disembarked  the  whole  of  his  troops,  and 
began  his  march  into  the  interior  by  slow  and  cautious  advan- 
ces. The  army  had  not  proceeded  more  than  six  miles,  when 
they  came  in  sight  of  an  Indian  village  governed  by  a  chief 
named  Hirihigua,  who  entertained  for  the  Spaniards  the  most 
implacable  hostility ;  the  Indians  fled  at  their  approach ;  and 
the  Spaniards,  finding  the  town  deserted,  entered  and  plunder- 
ed it  of  all  that  was  left.  Here  De  Soto  remained  with  his 
army  until  he  had  somewhat  explored  the  country,  and  com- 
pleted his  arrangements  for  advancing  into  the  interior. 

During  the  stay  of  the  Spaniards  at  this  post,  Hirihigua  and 
his  warriors  lost  no  opportunity  of  harassing  them  by  day  and 
by  night.  The  savages  burned  with  revenge  against  their  in- 
vaders ;  yet  they  dreaded  the  terrible  arms  and  horses  of  their 
enemies.  De  Soto,  as  a  measure  of  policy,  used  every  exer- 
tion and  entreaty  to  appease  the  wrath  of  the  vindictive  chief, 
but  all  in  vain.  He  endeavored  by  his  interpreters,  and  by 
prisoners,  discharged  loaded  with  presents  and  favors,  to  gain 
his  confidence  and  friendship.  But  to  all  their  entreaties  he 
answered  scornfully,  and  upbraided  his  warriors  for  their  in- 
tercession. His  indignant  reply  in  all  cases  was,  "I  want 
none  of  their  speeches  and  promises  ;  bring  me  their  heads,  and 
I  will  receive  them  joyfully."  Ten  years  before,  this  chief  had 
been  treated  with  great  cruelty  and  treachery  by  Pamphilo 
de  Narvaez,  after  having  shown  great  kindness  to  him  and  his 
army.  Among  other  outrages,  Narvaez  had  caused  the  moth- 
er of  Hirihigua  to  be  torn  to  pieces  before  his  eyes  by  blood- 
hounds ;  after  which  he  caused  his  own  nose  to  be  cut  off  or 
otherwise  mutilated.    The  remembrance  of  these  wrongs  and 

Vol.  I.— B 


18 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


cruelties  was  fresh  in  his  mind.  De  Soto  and  his  army  were 
countrymen  of  Narvaez,  and  he  held  them  answerable  for  the 
treachery  of  their  predecessors. 

Before  advancing  further  into  the  country,  De  Soto  deter- 
mined to  provide  himself  with  guides  and  interpreters  who 
were  acquainted  with  the  country.  Having  learned  that  a 
Spaniard  by  the  name  of  Juan  Ortiz,  who  had  been  left  by  the 
fleet  of  Narvaez  nearly  eleven  years  before,  remained  a  pris- 
oner and  slave  in  a  neighboring  tribe,  he  determined  to  obtain 
possession  of  him ;  for  he  would  understand  both  the  Spanish 
and  Indian  languages ;  besides,  he  would  be  able  to  give  much 
valuable  information  relative  to  the  country,  the  number,  and 
the  customs  of  the  Indians.  After  a  hazardous  enterprise  by 
some  of  his  bravest  troopers,  he  obtained  possession  of  this  in- 
dividual, and  soon  afterward  took  up  his  line  of  march  toward 
the  northeast,  having  left  a  garrison  to  hold  the  post  of  Hiri- 
higua. 

During  their  stay  at  the  latter  place,  they  had  succeeded  in 
capturing  a  number  of  Indians,  who  were  chained  and  made  to 
serve  as  guides,  and  porters  of  the  baggage. 

The  army  pursued  an  Indian  trace,  which  traversed  the  low, 
marshy  region  south  and  east  of  the  Hillsborough  River,  to- 
ward the  northeast.  Their  guides  led  them  through  thick 
woods,  with  tangled  vines  and  undergrowth,  through  swamps, 
marshes,  and  deep  morasses,  almost  impassable  for  man  or 
horse.  Sometimes  they  passed  over  small  quaking  prairies, 
with  a  thick  vegetable  soil,  and  with  water  beneath.  At  first 
it  would  bear  the  horses,  and  then,  yielding,  leave  them  in  a  suf- 
focating bog.  When  the  woods  were  thick,  and  the  path  in- 
tricate, they  were  beset  by  hordes  of  savages  lurking  in  am- 
bush, who  poured  showers  of  arrows  upon  them,  where  neither 
cavalry  nor  foot  could  follow  to  attack.  After  several  days  of 
severe  toil,  and  great  perplexity  in  threading  their  way  through 
almost  impassable  swamps  and  bogs,  they  at  length  came  to  a 
deep  river,  which  was  out  of  its  banks  from  recent  rains.  On 
each  side  of  the  stream,  for  a  mile  and  a  half  in  width,  was  a 
low  swamp,  which  was  excessively  boggy  when  not  complete- 
ly covered  with  water.  Three  days  were  spent  in  continued 
and  fruitless  attempts  to  find  a  firm  crossing-place.*  During 
the  whole  of  this  time,  they  were  sorely  harassed  by  continued 

•  Gonqaest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  chap,  vii.-xiv. 


[book  I. 

I  army  were 
rable  for  the 

Soto  deter- 
preters  who 
irned  that  a 
n  left  by  the 
ained  a  pris- 
led  to  obtain 
the  Spanish 
o  give  much 
number,  and 
nterprise  by 
on  of  this  in- 
larch  toward 
post  of  H  in- 
succeeded  in 
and  made  to 

rsed  the  low, 

h  River,  to- 

irough  thick 

igh  swamps, 

for  man  or 

ing  prairies, 

th.     At  first 

lem  in  a  suf- 

the  path  in- 

ling  in  am- 

lere  neither 

eral  days  of 

vay  through 

1  came  to  a 

rains.     On 

idth,  was  a 

It  complete- 

i  continued 

*     During 

f  continued 


A.D.  1539.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


19 


assaults  from  hostile  Indians,  with  terrific  yells.  They  became 
impatient,  and,  in  despair,  suspecting  their  Indian  guides  of 
treachery,  caused  four  of  them  to  be  torn  to  death  by  blood- 
hounds. The  guides  atoned  with  their  lives  for  the  errors  of 
their  enemies,  and  for  the  impassable  nature  of  the  country. 
Yet  no  obstacles  could  turn  their  course ;  other  guides  were 
selected,  who  finally  led  them  across,  where  the  bottom  of  the 
swamp  was  firm,  but  covered  with  water  up  to  the  knees,  and 
often  to  the  armpits.  Still  they  pressed  on,  and  at  length 
reached  the  channel  of  the  river,  which  was  swarming  with 
Indians  in  their  canoes,  darting  through  the  inundated  swamp 
and  trees,  and  sending  forth  showers  of  arrows  upon  them. 
A  rude  Indian  bridge,  made  by  a  tree  felled  in  from  each  bank, 
and  joined  by  a  floating  raft,  enabled  them  to  cross,  while  the 
horses  were  obliged  to  swim. 

They  were  now,  in  all  probability,  on  the  Withlacoochy 
River,  which  has  been  made  memorable  in  modern  times  by 
the  disasters  of  the  bravest  troops  of  the  United  States.*  They 
were  probably  in  the  region  of  the  Wahoo  Swamp,  and,  pur- 
suing their  route,  they  crossed  from  the  south  to  the  north  side, 
and  continued  their  march  toward  the  north. 

After  almost  incredible  difficulties  and  perplexities,  and  after 
having  lost  several  of  their  brave  companions,  the  army  arriv- 
ed at  the  village  of  Acuera,  a  hostile  and  warlike  cacique. 
This  village  was  about  thirty  miles  north  of  the  Withlacoochy, 
or  Amaxura  River,  situated  in  a  beautiful  and  fertile  bottom, 
environed  by  extensive  fields  of  corn,  and  by  gardens  abound- 
ing in  pumpkins,  squashes,  and  other  vines ;  besides  beautiful 
copses  of  fruit-trees  close  at  hand. 

The  Cacique  Acuera  and  all  his  people  fled  to  the  forests,  and 
would  hold  no  intercourse  with  De  Soto,  who,  by  interpreters 
and  captured  Indians,  with  every  token  of  peace  and  friendship, 
endeavored  to  gain  a  friendly  interview.  But  the  implacable 
chieftain  returned  only  the  most  haughty  and  vaunting  re- 
proaches for  the  cruelty  and  treachery  of  his  countrymen, 
Pamphilo  de  Narvaez  and  De  Ayllon,  in  former  times. 

Near  the  village  of  Acuera,  De  Soto  remained  for  twenty 
days,  to  recruit  his  men  and  horses  after  their  perilous  marches. 

*  It  was  on  this  ill-fated  stream  where  the  brave  but  unfortunate  Major  Dade,  with 
hi«  detachment  of  United  States  troops,  was  inhumanly  butchered  by  the  Seminoles 
and  negroes  on  the  28th  of  December,  1835.  -  See  Williams's  Florida,  p.  2X7,  218. 


20 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  I. 


They  found  abundance  of  corn  and  other  culinary  vegetables 
in  the  adjoining  fields,  which  were  numerous  and  extensive. 
The  camp  was  securely  fortified,  so  as  to  prevent  sudden  sur- 
prise ;  yet  the  Indians  ceased  not,  day  or  night,  to  harass 
them  in  every  form  of  savage  warfare.  Small  parties  dared 
not  leave  the  camp;  for  whoever  loitered  a  hundred  yards 
from  it  was  picked  off  by  the  arrows  of  the  Indians,  concealed 
in  the  adjoining  thickets.  Those  who  were  thus  killed  were 
beheaded,  and  their  heads  presented  to  their  chief;  and  next 
morning  the  Spaniards  would  find  the  bodies  quartered  and 
hung  upon  trees,  or'stuck  upon  stakes  in  sight  of  their  camp. 
Fourteen  Spaniards  thus  lost  their  lives  while  encamped  at 
Acuera ;  yet  the  Indians  were  so  wary,  that  they  were  seldom 
taken  or  killed ;  the  whole  loss  of  the  savages  in  twenty  days 
did  not  exceed  fifty  warriors. 

The  Spaniards  were  now  about  seventy  or  eighty  miles  dis- 
tant from  Hillsborough  Bay,  in  a  due  north  direction,  and  about 
twelve  miles  southwest  from  Orange  Lake.  Having  explored 
the  country  for  many  miles  around,  by  detachments  and  fora- 
ging parties,  De  Soto  determined  to  march  for  the  country  of 
Ocali,  about  forty  miles  further  north.  In  the  first  thirty  miles 
they  passed  over  a  thin,  barren  region,  and  some  pine  forests, 
probably  northwest  of  the  present  site  of  Fort  Micanopy,  be- 
fore they  entered  the  fertile  region  of  Ocali.  For  twenty 
miles  further,  they  passed  through  a  fruitful  valley,  thickly  in- 
habited, and  abounding  in  fields.  At  length  they  arrived  at 
the  chief  town,  called,  after  the  country,  Ocali.  This  was  one 
of  the  most  extensive  towns  in  Florida,  and  contained  six  hun- 
dred houses.  It  was  situated  upon  the  south  side  of  a  river, 
in  all  probability  the  Suwanee,  or  the  Santa  Fc  branch. 

Here  the  Spaniards  remained  several  days,  finding  plenty 
of  corn,  fruits,  and  other  vegetables.  The  Indians  were  less 
hostile  than  most  of  those  they  had  seen ;  but  living  in  a  fertile 
and  open  country,  where  the  cavalry  could  act,  the  Spaniards 
had  nothing  to  fear  from  their  hostility,  had  they  been  other- 
wise. Having  constructed  a  bridge  across  the  river,  and  hav- 
ing captured  about  thirty  Indians  to  serve  as  guides,  De  Soto 
set  out  northward  with  his  army  for  the  great  country  of  Vita- 
chuco,  about  forty  miles  distant,  and  called  in  the  Portuguese 
narrative  the  Province  of  Palache.* 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  chap.  xv.-zviiL 


[book  I. 

vegetables 

extensive. 

udden  sur* 

to  harass 
rties  dared 
Ired  yards 

concealed 
tilled  were 
;  and  next 
rtered  and 
heir  camp, 
camped  at 
ere  seldom 
venty  days 

yr  miles  dis- 
,  and  about 
g  explored 
s  and  fora- 
conntry  of 
hirty  miles 
ine  forests, 
anopy,  be- 
or  twenty 
thickly  in- 
arrived  at 
lis  was  one 
d  six  hun- 
jf  a  river, 
nch. 

ing  plenty 
were  less 
in  a  fertile 
Spaniards 
een  other- 
,  and  hav- 
,  De  Soto 
y  of  Vita- 
ortuguese 


A.D.  1530.] 


VALLEV  OF   TUB    MlSSIddim. 


81 


v!^ 


The  country  of  Vitachuco  was  a  large  territory,  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  across,  under  the  government  of  three  brothers, 
but  called  after  the  eldest,  who  was  cacique,  or  king.  This 
country,  no  doubt,  extended  from  the  tribe  last  named  to  wliat 
is  now  the  southern  limit  of  Hamilton  county,  Florida.  After 
three  days'  march  through  a  more  open  country  than  that  for- 
merly traversed,  they  arrived  at  the  frontier  settlements  of 
Vitachuco,  and  approached  the  first  town,  which  was  that  of 
Ochile,  one  of  the  younger  brothers.  This  town  De  Soto  sur- 
prised at  daybreak,  and  secured  the  chief  and  some  of  his  prin- 
cipal warriors  and  attendants  as  prisoners.  These  were  treated 
with  every  kindness  and  attention,  for  the  purpose  of  securing, 
through  them,  a  peaceable  passage  through  the  country  of  the 
other  two  brothers.  This  village  was  strongly  fortified,  and 
contained  about  fifty  large  houses. 

After  some  days  of  delay  they  marched  to  the  town  of  the 
second  brother,  and,  through  the  messages  and  influence  of  the 
first,  De  Soto  obtained  a  friendly  reception.  After  this  they 
marched  toward  the  town  of  the  cacique,  or  oldest  brother,  in- 
terpreters and  messengers  having  been  sent  in  advance.  Vita- 
chuco, however,  was  displeased  with  the  kind  reception  given 
to  the  Spaniards  by  the  younger  brothers ;  he  detained  the 
messengers,  and  returned  no  answer.  This  haughty  chieftain, 
during  eight  days,  would  receive  no  messenger  nor  compromise 
from  the  Spanish  governor,  but  returned  the  most  insulting  and 
menacing  messages.  He  warned  him  against  the  danger  of 
violating  his  territory,  and  upbraided  them  with  the  treachery 
and  cruelty  of  Narvaez.  Finally,  after  great  hostility  and 
menaces,  he  appeared  to  have  become  reconciled  to  the  Span- 
iards, and  professed  great  friendship.  He  appeared  anxious  to 
atone  for  his  former  hostility  by  acts  of  kindness,  in  supplying 
their  necessities,  and  accompanied  them  with  professions  of 
friendship,  and  unqualified  submission  to  the  wishes  of  De  Soto. 
The  latter,  however,  began  to  suspect  a  plot  of  treachery ;  and 
his  suspicions,  whether  just  or  unfounded,  terminated  in  the 
most  dreadful  slaughter  of  the  natives. 

Among  the  demonstrations  of  friendship  and  esteem  toward 
De  Soto,  the  cacique  proposed,  probably  in  the  spirit  of  gener- 
ous rivalry,  to  make  a  display  before  him  of  his  power,  and  the 
number  of  warriors  under  his  command,  as  well  as  the  excel- 
lence of  his  tactics  and  evolutions,  in  a  grand  review.    On  a 


S2 


III8T0RY   OF   Till 


[book  I. 


given  day  the  whole  of  his  warriors  were  assembled,  to  the 
number  of  several  thousands,  including  nearly  all  his  tribe. 
During  the  parade,  I)e  Soto  desired  that  his  warriors  too 
should  display  ;  the  chief  assented,  and  the  Spaniards  marched 
out  with  glittering  arms  and  flying  banners  to  the  sound  of 
nwrtial  music.  They  marched  before  the  Indians,  the  infantry 
and  cavalry  duly  arranged,  when,  upon  a  signal  given  by  a 
blast  of  trumpets,  they  fell,  sword  in  hand,  upon  the  terrified 
and  unsuspecting  Indians.  In  three  hours  not  less  than  five 
hundred  of  the  warriors  were  numbered  with  the  dead,  and 
nine  hundred  were  secured  as  prisoners  and  slaves.  The  re- 
mainder escaped  to  the  woods,  thickets,  and  a  lake,  which  was 
near  the  town.  Among  the  prisoners  was  Vitachuco  himself, 
and  many  of  his  choicest  warriors. 

The  town  of  Vitachuco  was  situated  upon  a  lake,  probably 
about  twelve  miles  southeast  of  Suwanee  River,  where  it  forms 
the  southern  limit  of  Hamilton  county.  In  this  massacre  the 
Indians  defended  themselves  with  great  courage  against  the 
superior  arms  of  the  Spaniards  and  the  terrible  charges  of  their 
cavalry ;  but  flight  was  their  only  safety. 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  captive  Indians  rose  upon  their 
treacherous  invaders,  preferring  death  to  an  ignominious  sla- 
very. This  gave  the  Spaniards  a  pretext  for  putting  to  death, 
in  cold  blood,  the  whole  of  their  prisoners.  Some  were  tied  to 
stakes  and  shot  with  arrows ;  others  were  cut  to  pieces,  or  torn 
with  dogs. 

Whether  De  Soto  was  justifiable  in  this  atrocious  act,  must 
ever  remain  unknown.  He  justified  himself  by  a  belief  that  the 
chief  intended  to  play  the  same  treachery  upon  him,  and  that 
he  saved  the  lives  of  his  men  only  by  anticipating  him  in  his 
cruel  purpose.  In  favor  of  the  Indian,  it  may  be  said,  that  his 
conduct  in  this  case  was  only  a  specimen  of  the  policy  and 
conduct  of  the  Spaniards  in  the  conquest  of  Mexico  and  Peru, 
where  De  Soto  learned  his  Indian  morality.  Pretexts  were 
not  wanting  in  other  instances,  when  he  wished  to  gratify  his 
desire  of  pomp  and  power,  or,  it  may  be,  to  give  his  troops  an 
easy  revenge  for  all  the  toils,  hardships,  and  conflicts  they  had 
encountered  since  their  disembarkation.  In  favor  of  the  Indians, 
it.  may  be  asked,  if  they  came  there  prepared  to  exterminate 
their  invaders,  why  were  they  unable  to  defend  themselves 
against  their  attack?     The  Indian  princes  were  always  anxious 


^•3 


M 


[UUUK    I. 

)led,  to  the 
1  his  tribe, 
arriors  too 
Is  marched 
3  sound  of 
he  infantry 
given  by  a 
he  terrified 
s  than  iive 
dead,  and 
.  The  re- 
which  was 
ICO  himself, 

3,  probably 
sre  it  forms 
issacre  the 
igainst  the 
^63  of  their 

upon  their 
linious  sla- 
to  death, 
^ere  tied  to 

es,  or  torn 

act,  must 

ief  that  the 

,  and  that 

him  in  his 

d,  that  his 

(olicy  and 

and  Peru, 

xts  were 

ratify  his 

troops  an 

they  had 

e  Indians, 

terminate 

emselves 

s  anxious 


A.D.  1630.] 


VALLEY   or   THE    MIddldtilPPI. 


ff 


to  impress  Europeans  with  their  strenpflh  and  power ;  and  if, 
in  this  case,  the  cacique  desi^'ned  treachery,  his  designs  have 
been  forever  concealed  by  the  known  and  terrible  designs  of 
his  antagonist. 

Five  days  after  the  massacre  of  Vitachuco,  the  Spaniards 
resumed  their  niarch  northward,  to  a  country  called  Osachile, 
after  the  name  of  its  chief  town,  which  was  situated  thirty 
miles  muth  of  Vitachuco.  The  fame  of  their  treachery  and 
cruelty,  however,  had  preceded  them,  and  hud  roused  the 
savages  to  the  most  determined  resistance.  They  had  not 
marched  more  than  twelve  miles  before  they  came  to  a  large 
and  deep  river,  which  formed  the  boundary  between  the  two 
countries.  Here  the  Indians  contested  the  passage ;  but  the 
country  being  open,  so  that  the  cavalry  could  move,  the  sav- 
ages were  soon  dispersed,  and  the  army  crossed  at  their  leisure 
upon  rafts  constructed  for  the  occasion.  They  marched  partly 
through  an  open  country,  and  at  length  arrived  at  the  village 
of  Osachile,  containing  about  two  hundred  houses.  The  river 
crossed  in  this  march  was  doubtless  the  Suwanee  River.  The 
Indians  of  this  village  having  heard  of  the  approach  of  the 
Spaniards,  and  knowing  the  terror  of  their  arms,  and  the  still 
greater  terror  of  their  warlike  animals,  had  fled,  and  left  the 
town,  as  usual,  an  easy  capture.  This  village  resembled  most 
of  those  in  Florida  in  the  manner  of  its  construction.  The 
house  of  the  chief  was  built  upon  a  high  artificial  mound,  or 
eminence,  in  a  level  country.  The  mound  was  large  enough 
to  contain  on  its  level  summit  from  five  to  ten  houses  for  the 
chief  and  his  family,  v/ith  their  attendants.  Around  the  base 
of  this  eminence  were  the  houses  of  the  other  chiefs  and  war- 
riors of  most  distinction,  and  others  successively  in  the  order 
of  their  respective  rank.  The  margin  of  the  mound  was  fortified 
by  pickets  and  other  wooden  barriers.  The  ascent  was  an 
avenue  about  fifteen  feet  wide,  inclosed  on  each  side  by  -strong 
pickets  made  of  trunks  of  trees,  set  deep  into  the  ground. 
Within  this  passage  were  rude  steps  made  of  logs  laid  trans- 
versely, and  partly  buried  in  the  ground.  The  other  sides  of 
the  mound  were  steep,  and  inaccessible  below  the  pickets  on  the 
margin.* 

De  Soto  remained  in  this  town  only  two  days,  as  it  was  now 
getting  late  in  the  season,  and  he  wished  to  reach  the  country 

*  Oonqaeit  of  Florida,  chap.  zx.-zzi. 


34 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


of  Appalach6  before  winter.  He  learned  at  Osachile  that  a 
few  days'  march  would  bring  him  to  that  country,  of  which  he 
had  heard  so  much  during  his  whole  march.  The  natives  al- 
ways referred  to  it  as  the  most  fertile  and  populous  of  all  coun- 
tries, and  as  inhabited  by  the  most  warlike  nation  on  the  Con- 
tinent. Besides,  it  was  supposed  to  be  near  the  gold  region, 
where  they  were  to  reap  the  wealth  for  which  they  had  under- 
taken their  adventurous  campaign.  Only  forty  miles  now  in- 
tervened between  the  two  countries  ;  but  nearly  the  whole  of 
the  intervening  region  was  uninhabited.  On  the  fourth  day 
they  arrived  at  the  "  Great  Morass."  This  was  a  wide  swamp, 
covered  with  lofty  trees,  with  a  dense  undergrowth  of  thorns, 
brambles,  and  vines,  so  interwoven  as  to  form  a  perfect  barrier 
to  man  or  horse.  In  the  center,  or  lowest  part  of  this  morass, 
was  a  large  shallow  lake,  or  sheet  of  water,  more  than  a  mile 
in  width,  and  several  miles  in  length.  The  trace  led  through 
this  dismal  region,  scarcely  wide  enough  for  two  to  pass 
abreast,  between  two  walls  of  matted  vines  and  thorns  nearly 
a  hundred  feet  high.  The  advanced  guard,  in  single  file,  pen- 
etrated but  a  small  distance  into  this  forest,  when  they  were 
met  by  a  band  of  hostile  Indians.  These  defended  the  pass 
every  step  to  the  central  lake,  although  only  two  or  three  of 
the  front  rank  on  each  side  could  engage  at  one  time.  When 
they  reached  the  lake,  both  parties  having  room  to  spread  and 
form  for  action,  the  contest  became  general.  The  governor 
sent  forward  a  re-enforcement,  and  attended  it  in  person ;  for 
he  was  always  in  the  hottest  part  of  a  battle.  Still  the  Indians 
made  a  bold  stand  ;  and  they  also  having  received  a  strong  re- 
enforcement,  made  the  battle  long  and  bloody.  Both  parties 
gradually  spread  out  into  the  lake,  and  fought  with  great 
courage,  nearly  up  to  their  waists  in  water.  The  lake  abound- 
ed with  a  vast  quantity  of  roots,  cypress  knees,  bushes,  briers, 
and  fallen  trees,  over  which  they  were  liable  to  stumble  at 
every  step.  It  was  the  design  of  the  Indians  to  check  the 
progress  of  the  Spaniards  at  this  point,  and  prevent  their  fur- 
ther march  into  their  country.  The  path  led  through  the  water 
to  the  opposite  side  of  the  lake,  and  here  they  might  be  em- 
barrassed, and  made  to  lose  their  way.  But  the  courage  of  De 
Soto  and  his  perseverance  were  equal  to  any  obstacle  that 
could  be  opposed,  and  he  finally  succeeded  in  driving  off  the 
Indians  and  passing  the  morass,  which  was  altogether  more 


[book  I. 

lile  that  a 
f  which  he 
natives  al- 
f  all  coun- 
1  the  Con- 
•Id  region, 
lad  under- 
s  now  in- 
whole  of 
burth  day 
le  swamp, 
of  thorns, 
!ct  barrier 
is  morass, 
an  a  mile 
d  through 
)  to  pass 
ns  nearly 
file,  pen- 
hey  were 
the  pass 
three  of 
When 
•read  and 
governor 
son ;  for 
e  Indians 
trong  re- 
parties 
th  great 
abound- 
!,  briers, 
imble  at 
leck  the 
leir  fur- 
e  water 
be  em- 
e  of  De 
3le  that 
off  the 
r  more 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


25 


A.D.  1539.] 

than  five  miles  across,  being  about  two  miles  on  each  side  of 
the  lake.  About  forty  yards  in  the  middle  of  the  lake  was  too 
deep  to  be  forded  without  swimming.  The  Indians  still  met 
them  in  the  narrow  trace,  or  defile,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
lake,  and  resolutely  defended  every  inch  of  the  path  until  they 
emerged  into  more  open  and  higher  ground.  Here  likewise 
they  made  an  obstinate  resistance.  Fearing  the  action  of  the 
cavali  y,  which  would  have  more  room  for  operating,  they  had 
obstructed  the  woods  with  fallen  trees,  and  by  vines  and 
branches  tied  from  one  tree  to  another ;  and  sheltering  them- 
selves among  the  trees,  they  plied  the  Spaniards  with  showers 
of  arrows.  The  Indians,  concealed  among  thickets,  would 
spring  forth  as  the  enemy  advanced,  and  rapidly  discharge  six 
or  seven  arrows  each  while  a  Spaniard  could  fire  and  re-load 
his  arquebuse  once.  For  six  long  miles  were  the  Spaniards 
compelled  here  to  toil  and  fight  their  way,  without  a  possibility 
of  taking  vengeance  until  they  should  reach  the  open  country. 
Two  days  were  occupied  in  this  perilous  passage ;  but  so  soon 
as  they  did  reach  the  open  country  they  gave  loose  reins  to 
their  vengeance,  pursued  the  Indians  wherever  they  could  be 
seen,  cutting  them  down,  or  lancing  them  to  death. 

In  this  same  morass  Narvaez,  in  his  expedition,  was  defeated 
by  the  Indians,  and  compelled  to  retreat  toward  the  sea  with 
the  wreck  of  his  army.  Many  of  De  Soto's  brave  men  lost 
their  lives  here  too,  and  many  of  them  were  severely  wounded. 

De  Soto  cotitinued  his  march,  and  passed  through  many 
miles  of  inhabited  country  with  numerous  fields ;  at  length  he 
came  to  a  deep  river  bordered  by  dense  forests,  which  was  the 
boundary  between  Osachile  and  Appalache.  This  was,  in  all 
probability,  the  Oscilla  River  of  the  present  day.  This  was 
the  last  difficult  barrier  against  their  advance ;  the  Indians  had 
assembled  in  large  numbers  to  dispute  the  passage  of  the  river. 
They  strongly  barricaded  the  road  and  banks  of  the  river  with 
palisades  to  prevent  the  passage  of  the  cavalry,  and  here  they 
fought  with  the  fury  of  desperation  ;  but  at  length  were  defeat- 
ed by  the  intrepid  Spaniards,  who  entered  Palache,  or  the  Ap- 
palarln';  country,  victoriously. 

Havii  J  crossed  the  river,  they  pursued  their  march,  with  but 
little  interruption,  for  nearly  twelve  miles,through  alternate  lev- 
el lands  and  fertile  fields,until  they  reached  the  chief  town,  An- 
hayca,  which  they  found  deserted.    As  usual,  the  Spaniards 


26 


HISTOxlY   OP   THE 


[book  r. 


i 


took  possession,  De  Soto  himself  occupying  the  house  of  the 
cacique  as  his  headquarters.* 

Having  found  the  province  of  Appalache  fruitful,  and  abound- 
ing with  the  most  necessary  articles  for  the  sustenance  and 
comfort  of  man  and  beast,  De  Soto  determined  to  remain  en- 
camped at  Anhayca  until  the  severity  of  winter  should  be  over. 
His  army,  accordingly,  went  into  winter-quarters  about  the 
last  of  November. 

The  province  of  Palache,  or  Appalache,  was  extensive,  and 
probably  embraced  a  confederacy  of  tribes.  According  to  the 
best  authorities,  it  extended  from  the  Appalachicola  River 
around  the  north  and  northwest  of  Appalache  Bay  ;  but  as  to 
its  precise  limits  on  the  north  and  east,  there  is  much  uncer- 
tainty. In  all  their  marches  the  Spaniards  had  no  other  mode 
of  ascertaining  the  distances  traveled  over  than  by  rough  esti- 
mate ;  and  often  the  difficulties  of  the  route  may  have  caused 
the  distance  to  appear  much  greater  than  it  was  in  reality. 
Besides,  in  passing  over  an  unknown  wilderness,  inhabited  by 
savages  in  open  hostility,  it  is  not  likely  that  they  could  ascer- 
tain the  boundaries  and  extent,  of  any  country  or  tribe,  or  even 
get  the  exact  pronunciation  of  the  names,  where  all  v,  re  harsh, 
guttural  sounds  to  them.     That  part  of  the  provir  yhich 

the  town  of  Anhayca  was  situated  is,  by  general  as  ^  ^»laced 
from  about  one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  north 
of  the  present  site  of  St.  Mark's.  As  to  the  immediate  site  of 
this  town,  nothing  definite  can  be  ascertained ;  but  it  was  prob- 
ably in  the  vicinity  of  some  of  the  tributaries  of  the  Suwanee 
River,  or  nearer  the  Flint.  The  Spaniards,  pursuing  their  cir- 
cuitous marches,  considered  it  nine  days'  march  from  the  sea, 
and  near  one  hundred  leagues  north  from  the  Bay  of  Espiritu 
Santo. 

The  province  was  populous,  and  had  numerous  villages  and 
extensive  fields.  There  was  no  gold  in  the  country,  and  this 
was  a  sore  disappointment  to  the  Spaniards ;  but  the  former 
accounts  continually  given  them  of  its  fertility,  and  the  ex- 
treme hostility  and  fierceness  of  the  natives,  were  not  exag- 
gerated. Indeed,  they  were  without  doubt  the  most  fierce 
and  implacable  of  all  the  tribes  they  had  yet  seen.  During 
their  whole  stay  in  this  town,  which  was  nearly  four  months, 
they  were  harassed  with  constant  attacks,  by  day  and  by 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  159-162. 


[book  I. 
se  of  the 

d  abound- 
lance  and 
emain  en- 
d  be  over, 
about  the 

asive,  and 
ling  to  the 
ala  River 
but  as  to 
ich  uncer- 
ther  mode 
ough  e  sti- 
ve caused 
in  reality, 
labited  by 
uld  ascer- 
»e,  or  even 
-re  harsh, 
yhich 
3!  f i  ^»laced 
liles  north 
ite  site  of 
was  prob- 
Suwanee 
their  cir- 
n  the  sea, 
Espiritu 

ages  and 
and  this 

le  former 
the  ex- 

not  exag- 

ost  fierce 
During 
months, 
and  by 


A.D.   1540.]  VALLEY   OF   THE  MISSISSIPPI.  27 

night,  in  the  open  woods,  and  in  thick  ambuscades.  The  In- 
dians here,  too,  were  in  the  habit  of  taking  the  scalps  of  those 
they  killed,  a  custom  not  observed  among  the  tribes  in  the  lat- 
itude of  Tampa  Bay  at  that  time.  They  ambuscaded  foraging 
parties,  harassed  the  encampment  with  nightly  attacks  and  ter- 
rific yells,  and  also  lay  in  wait  continually  to  seize  cr  shoot 
down  with  arrows  any  that  ventured  from  the  camp.  The 
chief,  whose  name  was  Capafi,  remained  concealed  in  some 
strong-hold  or  fastness,  from  which  he  directed  his  plans  against 
the  Spaniards ;  but  no  intelligence  of  him  could  be  obtained, 
nor  would  he  receive  any  friendly  overtures  made  to  him. 

While  in  winter-quarters  at  Anhayca,  De  Soto  repeatedly 
sent  out  strong  detachments  through  the  surrounding  country, 
to  the  distance  of  forty  or  fifty  miles,  to  explore  the  country 
and  inquire  for  the  gold  region.  Some  of  these  detachments 
were  out  as  long  as  a  week  or  ten  days,  and  returned  and  re- 
ported the  country  on  the  north  fertile,  populous,  and  free  from 
marshes.  At  length  one  of  the  most  intrepid  and  persevering 
captains  was  dispatched  southward  with  a  strong  detachment 
of  horse  and  foot  to  reach  the  sea,  which  they  had  not  seen 
since  they  left  the  Bay  of  Espiritu  Santo.  This  detachment, 
after  incredible  difliculties  and  perplexities  in  deep  swamps, 
marshes,  &c.,  came  to  the  village  of  Aute,  and  thence  to  the 
sea,  at  the  place  where  Pamphilo  de  Narvaez  made  his  last 
encampment,  while  building  his  rude  brigantines  to  tempt  the 
watery  deep. 

Here  they  were  shown  by  the  Indian  guides  the  remains  of 
his  camp,  of  the  forge,  the  troughs  hewed  out  of  trees  for  feed- 
ing their  horses,  the  skeletons  of  the  horses  that  died  or  were 
killed  for  food,  and  also  the  spot  where  ten  of  his  men  had 
been  surprised  and  killed,  besides  many  other  melancholy  me- 
mentoes. 

[A.D.  1540.]  De  Soto  being  highly  pleased  at  having  found 
a  harbor  so  convenient,  sent  the  same  intrepid  Captain  Juan 
de  Anasco,  with  a  detachment  of  thirty  lancers,  on  the  peril- 
ous route  by  land,  back  to  the  post  of  Hirihigua,  to  order  on 
the  garrison  to  headquarters,  and  the  ships  around  to  the  Bay 
of  Aute.  All  this  was  effected  with  much  better  success  than 
might  have  been  expected,  considering  the  great  distance,  the 
impassable  nature  of  the  route,  and  the  fierce  hostility  of  the 
savages.  The  ships  also  arrived  at  the  newly-discovered  bay 
in  safety. 


28 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


Soon  after  the  vessels  arrived  at  this  bay,  De  Soto  dispatched 
an  able  officer  with  some  of  the  smaller  vessels  to  explore  the 
coast  westward  for  another  convenient  harbor,  to  which  sup- 
plies and  re-enforcements  might  be  brought  from  Havana  in 
the  fall,  when  he  would  be  further  westward.  This  officer  ac- 
complished his  mission  by  exploring  the  coast  around  for  more 
than  two  hundred  miles  to  the  Bay  of  Achusi,  which  afforded 
a  spacious,  deep,  and  secure  harbor.  This  bay  is  now  known 
as  Pensacola  Bay.  Here  the  fleet  was  directed  to  await  his 
arrival  in  the  fall,  after  having  brought  supplies  from  Havana. 

While  wintering  at  Anhayca,  De  Soto,  being  harassed  by 
continual  attacks  from  the  fierce  natives  by  day  and  by  night, 
determined  that  the  most  effectual  way  to  restrain  their  hos- 
tilities, and  secure  the  lives  of  his  men  and  horses,  which  were 
daily  diminished,  was  to  obtain  possession  of  the  person  of  their 
cacique,  through  whom  he  might  control  their  hostile  opera- 
tions. It  was  the  policy  of  the  Spaniards — fully  tested  in  Mex- 
ico— to  obtain  possession  of  the  person  of  the  king,  or  cacique, 
as  a  hostage,  through  whose  authority  they  could  restrain  the 
Indians  and  effect  other  objects.  De  Soto  was  well  aware  of 
this  fact,  and  in  most  cases,  his  first  object  in  entering  the  ter- 
ritory of  any  tribe  was  to  secure  the  chief,  on  account  of  the 
profound  obedience  and  respect  paid  to  him.  Hence  this  was 
alwo'^  s  a  matter  of  first  importance,  whether  accomplished  by 
force,  or  by  artifice  and  treachery.  In  most  tribes  through 
which  they  had  yet  passed,  the  terror  of  their  cruelty  had  pre- 
ceded them,  and  the  chiefs  and  all  their  people  fled  from  their 
villages  to  avoid  Spanish  treachery ;  for,  although  the  sole  ob- 
ject of  the  Spaniards  was  conquest  and  plunder,  they  were  not 
averse  to  obtaining  these  upon  as  easy  terms  as  possible  ;  hence 
De  Soto  had  made  every  effort  and  inquiry  to  discover  where 
the  chief,  Capafi,  concealed  himself.  At  length  he  ascertained 
that  the  place  of  his  retreat  was  in  a  dense  and  almost  inaccess- 
ible forest,  about  twenty  miles  distant.  De  Soto,  placing  him- 
self at  the  head  of  a  strong  detachment  of  horse  and  foot,  set 
out  to  surprise  and  capture  the  cacique  in  his  strong-hold. 
This  was  an  enterprise  of  peculiar  peril :  the  road  lay  through 
tangled  thickets  and  treacherous  morasses,  which  rendered  it 
almost  impassable  to  cavalry.  At  the  end  of  three  days,  and 
after  great  difficulties,  they  reached  this  formidable  retreat  of 
the  savage  king.    It  consisted  of  a  cleared  space,  in  the  midst 


[book  I. 

ispatched 

:plore  the 

hich  sup- 

[avana  in 

)fficer  ac- 

for  more 

I  afforded 

w  known 

await  his 

Havana. 

passed  by 

by  night, 

their  hos- 

bich  were 

n  of  their 

ile  opera- 

d  in  Mex- 

r  cacique, 

»strain  the 

aware  of 

s  the  ter- 

mi  of  the 

J  this  was 

)Hshed  by 

1  through 

had  pre- 

rom  their 

B  sole  ob- 

were  not 

e ;  hence 

er  where 

ertained 

naccess- 

ing  him- 

foot,  set 

>ng-hold. 

through 

idered  it 

ays,  and 

treat  of 

le  midst 


A.D.  1540.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


29 


t 


of  the  almost  impervious  forest,  which  they  had  prepared  for 
their  camp.  All  around  this  space  it  was  fortified  in  the  stron- 
gest Indian  manner.  The  only  avenue  to  it  was  by  one  narrow 
path  cut  through  the  forest,  and  lined  on  both  sides  with  dense 
thickets  of  vines,  thorns,  and  undergrowth.  About  every  hun- 
dred yards  this  path  was  strongly  barricaded  by  trees,  pali- 
sades, and  vines,  and  at  each  barricade  was  posted  a  guard  of 
the  bravest  warriors.  Beyond  these  sat  Capafi,  strongly  en- 
sconced in  the  midst  of  his  devoted  warriors.* 

De  Soto  commenced  the  attack ;  and,  after  acts  of  the  most 
daring  intrepidity  by  himself  and  his  troop,  they  forced  the  nar- 
row passage,  and  gained  one  barrier  after  another,  amid  the 
most  galling  showers  of  arrows  from  every  quarter.  Many  of 
the  Spaniards  were  severely  wounded ;  but  at  length  they 
gained  the  open  space  of  the  fort,  where  the  cacique  and  his 
chief  warriors  were  assembled.  Here  was  the  severest  fight 
and  the  greatest  havoc.  The  Indians  seemed  to  offer  them- 
selves a  willing  sacrifice  to  the  Spanish  sabres  for  the  protec- 
tion of  their  chief;  but  at  length,  being  overpowered  by  the  su- 
periority of  the  Spanish  arms,  they  were  mostly  killed,  and  the 
remainder  were  taken  prisoners.  Among  the  latter  was  the 
cacique  himself 

This  chief,  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  all  the  native  princes, 
was  an  object  of  gi'eat  curiosity  to  the  Spaniards.  He  was  so 
remarkably  fat  and  unwieldy  that  he  could  not  walk,  but  was 
carried  by  his  attendants  upon  a  litter  wherever  he  desired 
to  go.  This  was,  however,  probably  more  a  matter  of  form 
than  necessity;  for,  after  several  days  of  captivity,  he  effect- 
ed his  escape  fi*om  the  midst  of  his  guards,  as  they  alleged,  by 
crawling  off  on  his  hands  and  knees  while  they  were  asleep. 
His  devoted  warriors,  being  concealed  around  the  camp,  soon 
carried  him  to  a  place  of  safety.  The  guards  had  undergone 
severe  fatigue,  and,  overcome  with  sleep,  had  given  way  to 
slumber,  believing  it  impossible  for  their  unwieldy  prisoner  to 
escape ;  but  when  they  awoke  he  was  gone,  and  never  seen 
again  by  them.  To  appease  the  anger  of  De  Soto,  and  to  ex- 
cuse their  own  negligence,  they  invented  and  told  some  mar- 
velous tales  of  his  having  been  spirited  away  by  magic. 

De  Soto  in  Georgia. — Early  in  March,  1540,  De  Soto  broke 
up  his  winter-quarters,  and  set  out  for  the  northeast  in  search 

•  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  182-185. 


80 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


of  the  province  of  Cofachiqui,  which  was  supposed,  from  Indian 
accounts,  to  be  the  rich  country  for  which  he  was  in  search. 
He  had  been  informed  hy  the  guides  and  other  Indians  that  it 
lay  a  long  distance  off,  toward  the  northeast,  and  that  it  abound- 
ed in  gold,  silver,  and  pearls.     The  expectation  of  these  antic- 
ipated riches  buoyed  up  the  spirits  of  his  troops,  and  led  them 
cheerfully  onward.     They  passed  alternately  through  fertile 
fields  and  barren  forests ;  through  inhabited  regions  and  deep 
wildernesses ;    through  open,  high  woods,  and  deep,  gloomy 
swamps  ;  and  often  were  in  danger  of  starvation  in  remote  and 
desolate  forests.     In  their  route,  after  the  first  few  days,  they 
found  the  tribes  through  which  they  passed  friendly,  hospita- 
ble, and  confiding.     The  natives  of  these  remote  regions  were 
unacquainted  with  the  former  cruelties  and  treachery  of  Pam- 
philo  de  Narvaez ;    hence  they  were  less  suspicious  of  the 
strange  warriors.     From  Anhayca  they  passed  northward, 
probably  crossing  the  Flint  River,  and  pursuing  their  march 
in  the  valley  on  the  west  side  for  nearly  twenty  days,  until 
they  reached  the  southern  part  of  the  Cherokee  country,  called 
Achalaque.     Then  they  directed  their  route  to  the  northeast, 
crossing,  in  the  course  of  the  next  twenty  days'  march,  two 
large  rivers,  in  all  probability  the  Ocmulgee  and  Oconee  Riv- 
ers, not  far  from  the  vicinity  of  Macon  and  Milledgeville,  in 
Georgia.     As  they  passed  up  on  the  west  side  of  the  Flint  Riv- 
er, De  Soto  had  been  informed  by  some  Indian  chief  of  a  great 
and  rich  country  to  the  west,  called  Cosa ;  but  he  determined 
to  pursue  his  march  to  the  northeast,  in  search  of  the  province 
of  Cofachiqui.     In  the  remainder  of  this  march  he  received 
every  kindness  and  hospitality  from  the  Indians  that  could  be 
expected  from  unsophisticated  human  nature.     The  Spaniards, 
too,  had  learned,  by  their  first  year  in  Florida,  that  every  en- 
counter with  the  savages  only  increased  the  difficulties  of  their 
march,  and  reduced  the  number  of  their  men  and  horses  ;  hence 
they  were  careful  to  give  as  little  offense  to  the  natives  as  pos- 
sible, and  to  commit  fewer  depredations  upon  their  property. 

At  length,  after  an  entire  march  and  sojourn  of  more  than  two 
months,  the  Spanish  army  arrived  in  the  province  of  Cofachiqui 
about  the  middle  of  May.  This  province  was  situated  on  the 
head  waters  of  the  Savannah  River,  and  the  chief  town,  prob- 
ably, in  the  peninsula  at  the  junction  of  the  Broad  and  Savannah 
Rivers.     They  had,  in  their  march,  encountered  many  severe 


4 


[book  I. 

■om  Indian 
in  search, 
ans  that  it 
it  abound- 
hese  antic- 
i  led  them 
ugh  fertile 
3  and  deep 
ip,  gloomy 
emote  and 
days,  they 
ly,  hospita- 
gions  were 
ry  of  Fam- 
ous of  the 
northward, 
beir  march 
days,  until 
ntry,  called 
5  northeast, 
march,  two 
conee  Riv- 
dgeville,  in 
5  Flint  Riv- 
f  of  a  great 
determined 
le  province 
le  received 
it  could  be 
Spaniards, 
every  en- 
lies  of  their 
|ses ;  hence 
ves  as  pos- 
property. 
e  than  two 
Cofachiqui 
ited  on  the 
iwn,  prob- 
Savannah 
vny  severe 


A.D.  1540.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


31 


difficulties  and  hardships  ;  and,  having  missed  their  way,  they 
were  lost  three  days  in  a  desolate,  uninhabited  region,  their 
guides  bewildered,  their  provisions  exhausted,  and  starvation 
staring  them  in  the  face.  But  they  had  now  reached  the  termi- 
nation of  their  perilous  march.  They  found  the  country  ruled  by 
a  beautiful  Indian  queen,  or  female  cacique.  She  entertained 
the  Spanish  governor  and  his  army  with  great  ceremony,  kind- 
ness, and  even  generosity.  But  the  proud  spirit  of  De  Soto 
could  not  brook  the  mortification  of  finding  the  country  inhab- 
ited by  savages,  and  they  destitute  of  gems  and  precious  met- 
als. He  brooded  over  his  disappointment,  but  concealed  it 
from  his  troops ;  yet  it  was  discernible  in  his  morose  conduct, 
and  in  his  increased  sternness  to  his  men.  Among  the  latter 
the  disappointment  was  equally  great,  and  showed  itself  in 
murmurs  and  acts  of  marauding  upon  the  kind  and  hospitable 
Indians.  They  plundered  their  sacred  depositories  for  the 
bones  of  their  ancestors,  and  especially  of  the  "illustrious  dead." 
In  the  latter  were  deposited  the  most  costly  riches  they  possess- 
ed, which  were  numerous  valuable  pearls.  These  sacred  rel- 
ics were  plundered  for  the  jewels  found,  and  for  others  which 
they  hoped  to  find.  These  were  the  only  riches  to  be  found, 
and,  although  many  and  valuable,  were  to  be  obtained  in  large 
quantities  only  by  plundering  the  vaults  of  the  dead.  The  In- 
dians abhorred  the  sacrilege,  but  were  unable  to  punish  the 
perpetrators.  They  began,  however,  to  withhold  the  usual 
supplies  of  food  and  corn.  The  troops  began  to  find  new  diffi- 
culties, and  became  more  dissatisfied  ;  they  found,  among  the 
spoils  of  the  cemetery  of  the  chiefs,  several  old  coats  of  mail 
and  a  dagger,  which  they  learned  had  been  obtained  from  the 
expedition  of  the  cruel  and  unfortunate  De  Ayllon.  They  also 
learned  that  the  sea-coast  where  he  had  landed  was  only  ten 
or  twelve  days'  journey  distant,  and  that  they  were  then  upon 
the  head  streams  of  a  river  which  was  probably  the  Jordan, 
which  entered  the  sea  not  far  from  Point  St.  Helena,  the  place 
selected  by  that  unfortunate  man  for  his  colony.  They  there- 
fore desired  to  form  a  colony  here,  and  here  to  end  their  toils 
and  their  wars.  But  "  De  Soto  was  a  man  of  few  words  and 
stern,"  and  he  determined  to  march  toward  the  northwest,  along 
the  base  of  the  mountain  ranges,  and  thence  proceed  toward 
the  Bay  of  Achusi,  where  he  expected  to  meet  his  fleet  with 
supplies.* 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  i.,  p.  245-253. 


33 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  I. 


Having  refreshed  his  army  and  horses  by  a  sojourn  of  a  few 
^veeks,  ho  determined  to  set  out  for  the  northwest  about  the 
latter  part  of  May.  A  difficulty  having  occurred  between 
some  of  the  soldiers  and  the  Indians  while  he  remained  in  this 
country,  and  the  Indians  having  become  distrustful  and  un- 
friendly, De  Soto  determined  to  adopt  the  policy  found  so  suc- 
cessful in  the  conquest  of  Mexico  and  Peru,  which  was  to  ob- 
tain possession  of  the  sovereign,  and  insure  the  friendship  or 
forbearance  of  the  subjects.  He  therefore  obtained  possession 
of  the  queen,  and  carried  her  upon  his  march  through  her  do- 
minions, as  a  hostage  for  the  security  of  his  men  against  any 
hostile  designs  of  the  Indians.  All  due  respect  and  ceremony 
were  extended  to  her,  and  she  was  surrounded  by  a  numerous 
guard  to  prevent  her  escape  or  capture  by  her  people.  Through 
this  means  the  Spaniards  procured  a  safe  march  through  the 
territory  of  Cofachiqui  to  the  country  of  the  Cherokees,  called 
the  province  of  Chalaque.  Near  the  borders  of  this  country 
the  young  queen  effected  her  escape  from  the  Spaniards,  and  re- 
turned to  her  own  people.  The  Spaniards  passed  through  the 
country  of  the  Cherokees,  and  found  them  peaceable,  domestic, 
and  hospitable,  and  inhabiting  rather  a  sterile  region. 

At  first  they  feared  and  fled  from  the  Spaniards ;  but,  finding 
them  friendly,  they  came  forward  and  supplied  them  with  every 
thing  in  their  power  for  food.  But  they  knew  nothing  of  gold 
and  silver.  Padsing  westward  over  the  head  branches  of  the 
Chattahoochy  Uiver,  after  a  march  of  about  twenty-two  daysi 
the  Spaniards  arrived,  about  the  25th  of  June,  at  a  village  called 
Ichiaha,  situated  on  the  Etowee  branch  of  the  Coosa  River, 
probably  in  that  part  of  Georgia  now  designated  as  Floyd 
county.  While  here, the  usual  inquiries  for  gold  and  silver  were 
made,  and,  having  learned  that  yellow  metal  was  found  in  a 
region  forty  or  fifty  miles  to  the  north,  De  Soto  remained  here, 
and  sent  couriers  in  quest  of  the  region  supposed  by  Indian  ac- 
counts to  yield  gold.  At  the  end  of  ten  days  they  returned 
without  any  intelligence  of  gold,  and  with  no  other  booty  than 
a  buffalo  rug.  Having  secured  the  friendship  of  this  tribe,  De 
Soto  continued  his  march  toward  the  southwest  along  the  val- 
ley, and  on  the  north  side  of  the  Coosa  River  nearly  fifty  miles, 
within  the  limits  of  the  present  state  of  Alabama.* 

*  Conqneflt  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  chap.  iv. 


% 


[book  I. 


A.D.  1540.] 


VALLEY    OF  THE    MISBISSIPPI. 


33 


n  of  a  few 
about  the 
i  between 
ned  in  thia 
i\  and  un- 
ind  so  suc- 
was  to  ob- 
endship  or 
possession 
igh  her  do- 
gainst  any 
ceremony 
L  numerous 
Through 
hrough  the 
lees,  called 
lis  country 
rds,  and  re- 
;hrough  the 
e,  domestic, 
n. 

but,  finding 

with  every 

ing  of  gold 

ches  of  the 

two  daysi 

age  called 

osa  River, 

as  Floyd 

ilver  were 

bund  in  a 

ined  here, 

Indian  ac- 

returned 

booty  than 

s  tribe,  De 

ig  the  val- 

fifty  miles, 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE    SPANISH    EXPEDITION    EAST    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. — A.D.    1540 

TO    1541. 

Argument. — Do  Soto  marchca  down  the  Cooia  Rivor. — The  King,  or  Cacique,  of  Coia. 
— liii  Soto  cntcra  the  Territory  of  Tuicaliiza.  —  Noble  Person  and  lofty  Bearing  of 
Tuacaluza. — Ho  \»  inveigled  into  De  Soto's  Train. — The  Army  marches  through  thu 
Dominions  of  Tuscaluza. — Tlie  captive  King  is  impatient  and  indignant  at  his  De- 
tention.— Resolves  to  secure  his  Liberty  or  die.  —  Ileachca  Mauvile  witli  the  Army. 
— Do  Soto  apprehends  Diuiger  from  the  Native  Warriors. — The  severe  and  disas- 
trous Battle  of  Mauvile.  —  Indian  Courage  and  Desperation. — Deplorable  Condition 
of  tJic  Spanish  Army  oiler  the  Battle. — Do  Soto  resolves  to  advance  to  tlio  North- 
west.— Crosses  the  Tombigby  River  in  the  Face  of  an  Indian  Army. — Passes  the  Head 
Waters  of  Pearl  River.  —  Enters  the  Chickusu  Country. — Takes  Possession  of  o 
large  Indian  Town  for  his  Winter-cjuarters. — The  great  Battle  aiid  Conflagration  of 
Chicasu. — Great  Losses  of  the  Spanianls. — The  Army  marches  Westward  to  Chica- 
^iila,  where  they  spend  the  remainder  of  the  Winter. — They  march  Northwest  to  Al- 
ibamo. — Severe  Battle  of  Alibamo. — They  approach  the  Mississippi,  or  Rio  Qrande. 
— Preparations  for  crossing  the  great  River. — Indian  Hostilities  and  Opposition  to 
their  crossiiig. — The  Army  at  length  reach  the  western  Side  of  the  Rio  Grande. — 
The  probable  Crossing-place. 

[A.D.  1540.]  De  Soto  in  Alabama.  —  The  Spanish  army 
now  crossed  to  the  south  side  of  the  river,  and  pursued  their 
march  toward  the  province  of  Cosa.  After  easy  marches  for 
twenty-four  days  through  the  fertile  regions  and  fields  of  this 
extensive  province,  they  came,  about  the  first  of  August,  to  the 
chief  town,  named  Cosa,  which,  as  well  as  the  province,  was 
called  by  the  Spaniards  after  the  Cacique  Cosa.  This  town 
was  delightfully  situated  upon  a  noble  river,  supposed  to  be 
the  Coosa.  It  contained  five  hundred  dwellings,  some  of  which 
were  spacious.  The  cacique,  a  noble-looking  young  Indian, 
borne  upon  a  kind  of  litter  by  four  attendants,  and  attended 
by  one  thousand  warriors,  came  out  to  meet  De  Soto.  The 
chief  and  his  retinue,  all  adorned  with  lofty  plumes,  with  man- 
tles of  marten-skins  over  their  shoulders,  and  preceded  by  a 
band  of  music,  presented  a  splendid  and  imposing  appearance. 
The  chief  received  De  Soto  with  marks  of  great  respect  and 
with  much  ceremony ;  gave  him  a  residence  in  a  part  of  his  own 
house,  and  quartered  his  soldiers  in  the  town.  Great  kindness 
and  friendship  were  shown  by  the  Indians,  and  the  whole  army 
were  abundantly  supplied  with  every  thing  requisite  for  com- 

VoL.  I.— C 


84 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  I. 


fort  and  convenience.  The  fields  in  the  vicinity  were  numer- 
ous and  extensive,  and  the  Spaniards  spent  several  weeks  in 
the  neighborhood.  Late  in  August,  De  Soto  set  out  on  his 
inarch  southward.  He  was  attended  by  a  largo  number  of 
the  Cosa  Indians,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  the  baggage,  and 
accompanied  by  the  cacique,  who  was  taken,  attended  by  a 
Spanish  guard,  under  the  guise  of  special  honor,  but,  in  fact, 
as  a  guarantee  for  the  safety  of  the  Spaniards  against  any 
treachery  or  hostile  attack  from  the  Indians.  As  usual,  every 
attention  was  paid  to  the  chief;  a  splendid  mantle  and  a  horse 
were  allowed  him ;  but  still  he  was,  in  fact,  a  prisoner.  The 
Indians,  perceiving  that  their  king  was  not  at  liberty  to  depart 
from  his  escort  if  he  desired,  had  seriously  meditated  his  re- 
lease by  the  massacre  of  his  detainers.  Several  acts  indica- 
tive of  hostile  intentions  had  been  committed  by  some  of  the 
Indians,  who  had  been  punished  by  De  Soto,  and  put  in  chains. 
At  the  intercession  of  C'osa,  they  had  been  released,  and  a  state 
of  amicable  feeling  and  confidence  was  restored.  At  the  ex- 
treme of  Cosa's  dominions,  De  Soto  dismissed  the  cacique  with 
much  profession  of  friendship  and  with  presents. 

Proceeding  southward,  he  reached  the  confines  of  the  terri- 
tory of  Tuscaluza,  one  of  the  most  potent,  proud,  and  warlike 
chieftains  of  the  South.  His  sway,  probably,  extended  over  a 
large  portion  of  South  Alabama  and  Mississippi.  "  Tuscaluza 
had  heard  with  solicitude  of  the  approach  of  the  Spaniards  to 
liis  territories,  and  probably  feared  some  hostility  on  their  part, 
in  combination  with  his  rival,  the  Cacique  of  Cosa.  He  sent, 
therefore,  his  son,  a  youth  eighteen  years  old,  attended  by  a 
train  of  warriors,  on  an  embassy  to  De  Soto,  proffering  his 
friendship  and  services,  and  invitinr  -i!  to  his  residence,  which 
was  only  forty  miles  from  the  frontiers  of  Cosa."  De  Soto  gladly 
accepted  the  ofler.  When  he  had  advanced  within  five  or  six 
miles  of  the  town  where  Tuscaluza  was,  he  halted  the  army, 
and  proceeded,  in  company  with  his  staff,  toward  the  town, 
where  he  found  Tuscaluza  prepared  to  receive  him  in  great 
state.  Posted  upon  the  crest  of  a  hill,  which  commanded  a 
view  of  a  rich  and  beautiful  valley,  he  was  seated  on  a  kind 
of  throne,  or  wooden  stool,  used  by  the  caciques  of  the  coun- 
try. Around  him  stood  one  hundred  of  his  principal  men, 
dressed  in  rich  mantles  and  plumes.  Beside  him  was  his 
standard-bearer,  who  bore,  on  the  end  of  a  lance,  a  dressed 


[book  I. 

re  numer- 
weeks  in 
lut  on  his 
umber  of 
[gage,  and 
ided  by  a 
111,  in  fact, 
;ainst  any 
lual,  every 
nd  a  horse 
ner.     The 
J  to  depart 
ted  his  re- 
cts  indica- 
)me  of  the 
t  in  chains, 
and  a  state 
At  the  ex- 
icique  with 

f  the  terri- 
nd  warlike 
ded  over  a 
Tuscaluza 
aniards  to 
their  part, 
He  sent, 
nded  by  a 
Iffering  his 
|nce,  which 
oto  gladly 
five  or  six 
the  army, 
the  town, 
n  in  great 
manded  a 
on  a  kind 
the  coun- 
ipal  men, 
was  his 
a  dressed 


A.o.  1540.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MrSSIfldllTI. 


35 


det'r-skin,  stretched  out  to  the  size  (»f  a  buckler.  Tt  was  of  a 
yellow  color,  traversed  ')y  blue  stripes.  This  was  the  grout 
banner  of  this  warrior  chieftain,  and  the  only  military  stand- 
ard that  the  Sj)aniards  met  with  throughout  the  whole  expedi- 
tion.* 

This  celebrated  chieftain,  who  has  given  his  name  to  a  noble 
river,  as  well  as  the  capital  of  Alabama,  may  claim  a  few 
Uitrds  more.  He  was  of  extraordinary  stature,  being  a  foot 
taller  than  any  of  his  attendants  ;  he  was  about  fort;  years  of 
age ;  "  ills  countenance  was  handsome,  though  severe,  show- 
ing the  loftiness  and  ferocity  of  his  spirit,  for  which  he  was 
celebrated  throughout  all  the  country ;  he  was  broad  across 
the  shoulders,  and  small  at  the  waist,  and  so  admirably  formed 
that  the  Spaniards  declared  him  altogether  the  finest-looking 
Indian  they  had  yet  beheld."f 

When  I)e  Soto  approached,  Tuscaluza  rose  and  advanced 
twenty  j)aces  to  receive  him,  although  he  took  not  the  least 
notice  of  the  officers  and  cavaliers  who  preceded  him.  The 
chieftain  extended  great  kindness  and  friendship  to  De  Soto 
and  his  troops.  De  Soto,  as  usual,  suspected  treachery  from 
the  cacique,  and  got  possession  of  his  person  under  the  guise 
(»f  honor  and  respect.  He  surrounded  him  with  a  guard; 
clothed  him  in  a  splendid  scarlet  robe,  glittering  with  gold. 
After  a  few  days,  the  Spaniards  continued  their  march  toward 
the  Bay  of  Achusi.  They  desired  Tuscaluza  to  accompany 
them  through  his  dominions,  for  which  purpose  he  was  fur- 
nished with  a  horse  to  ride.  Only  one  horse  in  the  troop  was 
found  large  enough  for  his  use,  and  when  seated  upon  this  one 
his'  feet  almost  touched  the  ground.  Proceeding  southward, 
at  the  end  of  three  days  they  arrived  at  the  town  of  Tuscaluza, 
about  forty  miles  from  the  point  of  his  first  interview.  There 
the  march  assumed  a  northwestern  direction,  and  crossed  to 
the  west  side  of  the  Alabama  River.  A  few  days  afterward 
De  Soto  took  up  his  line  of  march  toward  the  southeast,  until 
he  arrived  at  the  town  of  Mauvile,  in  company  with  the  dis- 
tinguished chief  and  his  attendants. 

The  indignant  savage,  perceiving  that  he  was  detained  a 
prisoner  under  the  guise  of  friendship  and  pompous  ceremony, 
burned  with  secret  revenge ;  yet,  like  his  European  rival,  dis- 

*  Con<|ueat  of  Florida,  vol.  ii,  ch.  v.  aiid  vi.  t  Ibid,  vol.  ii.,  p.  31. 


86 


HISTORY   or  TUB 


[book  I. 


semhiing  the  greatest  solicitude  for  the  welfare  of  the  Span- 
iards, Tuscaluza  dispatched  some  of  his  attendants  in  advance 
to  Mauvile,  ahove  the  junction  of  the  Alabama  and  Tombigby 
Rivers,  under  the  pretext  of  ordering  supplies  and  attendants 
for  his  Spanish  friends ;  but  instead  of  ordering  supplies  for 
the  invaders,  he  summoned  his  warriors  to  rally  to  his  rescue, 
for  the  expulsion  or  destruction  of  their  enemies. 

De  Soto  continued  his  march,  and  at  length  arrived  in  the 
vicinity  of  Mauvile,  which  was  found  to  be  a  strongly-fortified 
town,  on  an  extensive  plain,  and  swarming  with  Indian  war- 
riors. From  various  incidents  on  the  way,  De  Soto  began  se- 
riously to  susj)ect  danger,  and  accordingly  kept  the  cacique 
well  guarded  with  twenty  soldiers ;  yet  the  soldiers  had  seen 
so  little  danger  from  Indians  for  several  months,  that  they  could 
not  be  made  to  apprehend  any  then.  The  town  of  Mauvile, 
from  which  the  modern  name  Mobile  is  derived,  is  situated  on 
the  north  side  of  the  Alabama  River,  in  a  fine  i)lain,  surround- 
ed by  a  bend  of  the  river,  not  a  great  distance  above  the  junc- 
tion of  the  Tombigby.  This  was  the  principal  town  in  the  do- 
minions of  Tuscaluza,  and  was  strongly  fortified.  Here  he 
and  his  chief  warriors  resided.  The  town  contained  eighty 
large  houses,  which  were  diflferent  from  those  of  other  towns. 
They  were  large  sheds  of  reeds  and  straw,  set  upon  posts,  and 
covering  a  large  surface  of  ground,  inclosed  by  pickets ;  and 
some  of  them  were  large  enough  to  accommodate  from  five 
hundred  to  a  thousand  persons.  The  whole  was  surrounded  by 
a  strong  wall,  made  of  a  double  row  of  large  pickets,  deeply  set 
in  the  ground,  bound  together  by  ties,  vines,  and  reeds,  and  ce- 
mented with  mud  and  moss,  and  plastered  over,  so  as  to  be 
impervious  to  arrows  or  darts,  except  at  the  port-holes  left  at 
proper  distances.  Every  fifty  yards  around  the  wall  was  a 
kind  of  wooden  lower,  capable  of  containing  six  or  seven  war- 
riors ;  there  were  only  two  gates  or  entrances,  one  on  the  east 
and  one  on  the  west  extremity.  Many  of  the  pickets  had  taken 
root,  and  were  growing  with  a.  profusion  of  branches  and  fol- 
iage. Such  was  the  ancient  town  of  Mauvile,  or  Mobile, 
where  De  Soto  met  his  severest  disaster,  and  where  was 
fought  (he  hardest  Indian  battle  on  record. 

Tlie  Disastrous  Battle  of  Mauvile. — During  more  than  four 
weeks,  while  De  Soto  had  been  leisurely  marching  throu^'rh  the 


4 

i 


[book  I. 

the  Span- 
in  advance 
Tombigby 

attendants 
jpplies  for 
his  rescue, 

ved  in  the 
fly-fortified 
idian  wur- 
»  began  se- 
he  cacique 
s  had  seen 
they  could 
(f  Mauvile, 
situated  on 
,  surround- 
e  the  junc- 
n  in  the  do- 
Here  he 
ned  eighty 
her  towns, 
posts,  and 
ckets;  and 
from  five 
ounded  by 
deeply  set 
ds,  and  ce- 
o  as  to  be 
oles  left  at 
i^all  was  a 
seven  war- 
on  the  east 
had  taken 
Bs  and  fol- 
)r  Mobile, 
:here  was 

than  four 
irough  the 


A.D.    1540.]  VALLKV   OF   THE    MI8BIB8IPPI.  87 

dominions  of  Tuscnluzn,  the  latter  wa«  secretly  maturing  the 
plan  which,  as  it  appeared,  he  had  previously  conreive«l,  for 
the  entire  destruction  of  the  Spanish  army.  The  van-guard, 
consisting  of  about  half  the  cavalry  and  near  two  hundred  in- 
fantry, under  De  Soto  in  person,  reached  the  strong  post  of 
Mauvile  at  eight  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  eighteenth  of  Oc- 
tober, having  loft  the  main  body  of  the  army  following  slowly 
a  few  miles  behind,  under  Luis  de  Moscoso.  At  the  town,  De 
Soto  was  met  by  a  large  body  of  warriors,  painted,  and  splen- 
didly dressed  and  e<iui|)ped,  preceded  by  a  band  of  young  fe- 
males, with  music,  songs,  and  dancing.  The  governor  and 
the  cacique  entered  on  horseback,  side  by  side,  and  were  re- 
ceived with  great  parade  und  r  spect.  So  soon  as  De  Soto 
and  his  chief  ;'«fice^'s  wore  pre  vil.-d  with  rooms,  and  the  bag- 
gage was  sto'v  d  ii>v:iy,  Tvisf  alL.za  informed  the  governor  that 
he  wished  to  retire  :».  fiiorl  time  to  see  his  people,  and  make 
further  arrangfMiu»T>t  fov  th-  remainder  rf  the  army.  De  Soto 
began  to  uppr^.htnd  tr<;;..'hery,  bt.'  wa.  uivAble  to  detain  the 
cacique.  After  -in  a*:  •enco  of  nn  ••  ur,  Do  Solo  jrut  a  messen- 
ger to  invite  hl,n  to  btvakl'asl,  na  they  hnd  been  :vi  the  habit  of 
eating  toget!  er.  This  /ir/isse,  i>>ed  to  (A  ).:n<.  pof!:^es5;on  of  the 
chief,  was  vdtljout  sue  >'f.<j„  Ciicujnsij?);'*e.'  i)e.-;ar"!  more  sus- 
picious ;  some  of  De  Soio'j  ajMes,  who  had  he^m  •m^v^,  before 
him,  came  to  hiin  urd  iniormed  him  <hai  there  wo^e  a  great 
many  choice  warriors  cncealtd,  perfectly  armed,  in  large 
houses  in  remote  parts  of  ♦be  town  -  und  that  ♦•!€  "vornen  were 
concealed  in  otli^r  \nr<:<.i  huuueji,  remote  froro  thes.^,  De  Soto, 
certain  that  mischiot  wa.^  brewiyig,  s«at  a  aiobsenger  back  to 
Luis  de  Moscoso,  orderin^^  hi  a.  to  advaaoc  /ipidly  with  the 
main  body  of  the  army.  At  leiigt!).  sevf  rul  messages  having 
been  sent  to  Tuscalu/a  without  his  uo/lcc,  the  messenger,  who 
was  not  permitted  lo  enter  i.b:!  house  v/here  he  was,  called  out 
aloud  from  ili  i  ioor  for  the  cacique.  This  was  deemed  dis- 
respectful by  his  attti:t!ao<:g,  and  was  resented  accordingly. 
WeapoP3  Tvero  drawn  by  some  of  the  Spaniards,  and  an  Indian 
chief  ;,nve  tiio  war-whoop,  which  rang  through  the  village. 
The  warriors  poured  out  from  every  house  and  from  the  plain 
around  the  town.  In  a  short  time  the  Spaniards  and  Indians 
were  engaged  in  one  general  and  deathly  melee  through  the 
principal  streets.  The  Spaniards  fought  with  great  courage 
and  vigor  against  overpowering  numbers.     At  length,  finding 


38 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book 


themselves  greatly  annoyed  by  missiles  of  every  kind  from 
the  house-tops,  as  well  as, from  behind  the  houses,  they  fell 
back,  disputing  every  inch  of  ground,  until  they  reached  the 
plain  outside  of  the  walls,  where  the  cavalry,  also,  could  act 
with  more  effect.  So  soon  as  they  left  the  town  the  Indians 
plundered  the  baggage,  and,  releasing  and  unchaining  the  cap- 
tives brought  from  Appalache,  furnished  them  with  arms  to 
assist  in  destroying  their  oppressors. 

Swarms  of  warriors  pressed  upon  the  Spaniards  in  the  plain 
with  the  utmost  fury,  discharging  showers  of  arrows  pointed 
with  flint  with  great  execution,  notwithstanding  their  defensive 
armor.  The  battle  raged  with  great  fury  backward  and  for- 
ward from  the  walls  to  the  plain  for  several  hours,  when  many 
of  the  Indians  were  disposed  to  shelter  themselves  from  the  fu- 
rious charges  of  the  cavalry  by  retreating  within  the  walls. 
De  Soto  determined  to  break  down  the  gates,  and  secure  ad- 
mission to  his  cavalry ;  this  was  soon  done  with  axes,  and  the 
cavalry  charged  through,  followed  by  a  part  of  the  infantry. 
The  battle  now  raged  fiercely  within  the  walls,  and  the  Span- 
iards set  fire  to  the  combustible  houses  covered  with  reeds  and 
straw.  These  were  soon  wrapped  in  flames,  and  the  town 
presented  a  scene  of  horrid  carnage,  smoke,  and  flame.  The 
wind  drove  the  flames  and  smoke  furiously  along  the  narrow 
streets,  where  hundreds  were  blinded  or  suffocated  by  the 
smoke,  and  burned  to  death.  The  fire  spread  to  one  large 
building  in  which  were  a  thousand  females,  most  of  whom 
were  consumed  with  it. 

The  battle  still  raged  with  great  fury  through  the  burning 
town  and  in  the  surrounding  (lain.  The  Indians  disdained  to 
yield  or  ask  for  quarter,  although  slaughtered  in  hundreds  by 
the  keen  sabres  of  the  Spaniards.  Repeatedly  repulsed,  they 
as  often  renewed  the  attack,  although  certain  to  die  in  the 
charge. 

This  terrible  strife  and  carnage  had  continued  for  near  five 
hours.  The  gallant  band  of  Spaniards  were  diminished  in  num- 
ber, and  those  remaining  were  almost  exhausted  with  fatigue, 
heat,  and  thirst.  Scarcely  able  to  attack,  they  collected  togeth- 
er to  stand  and  resist  only  the  attacks  of  the  numerous  host  of 
savages  still  swarming  around  them.  At  length  they  were  re- . 
lieved  by  the  approach  of  De  Moscoso  with  the  main  army, 
near  the  middle  of  the  afternoon.     The  fresh  troops  attacked 


[book  I. 

kind  from 
,  they  fell 
iched  the 
could  act 
le  Indians 
I  the  cap- 
i  arms  to 

the  plain 
's  pointed 
defensive 
1  and  for- 
ben  many 
»m  the  fu- 
he  walls, 
ecure  ad- 
i,  and  the 

infantry, 
the  Span- 
reeds  and 
the  town 
ne.  The 
e  narrow 
by  the 
>ne  large 
of  whom 

burning 

ained  to 

dreds  by 

sed, they 

\e  in  the 

near  five 
1  in  num- 
i  fatigue, 
d  togeth- 
i  host  of 
were  re- , 
n  army, 
attacked 


A.D.  1540.] 


VALLEY    OF   TUB   MISSISSIPPI. 


30 


the  Indians  on  all  sides  with  great  fury,  and  strewed  the  ground 
with  piles  of  their  dead  bodies,  while  the  fresh  cavalry  cut 
hideous  lanes  through  their  crowded  masses.  Toward  the 
evening  the  females  joined  in  the  contest  with  the  most  deter- 
mined fury,  and  threw  themselves  fearlessly  upon  the  swords 
and  spears  of  the  Spaniards.  The  carnage  ceased  only  with 
the  setting  sun ;  and  every  where  the  intrepid  De  Soto  was  in 
the  hottest  of  the  battle,  always  leading  on  the  impetuous 
charges  of  the  cavalry.  This  he  continued  to  do  even  after 
he  had  been  severely  wounded  by  an  arrow  in  the  thigh. 

"  Such,"  says  Theodore  Irving,  "  was  the  deadly  battle  of 
Mauvile,  one  of  the  most  sanguinary,  considering  the  number 
of  combatants,  that  had  occurred  among  the  discoverers  of  the 
New  World.  Forty-two  Spaniards  fell  dead  in  the  conflict ; 
eighteen  of  them  received  their  fatal  wounds  either  in  the  eyes 
or  in  the  mouth ;  for  the  Indians,  finding  their  bodies  cased  in 
armor,  aimed  at  their  faces.  Scarce  one  of  the  Spaniards  but 
was  more  or  less  wounded,  some  of  them  in  many  places. 
Thirteen  of  the  wounded  died  before  their  wounds  could  be 
dressed,  and  twenty-two  afterward,  so  that  in  all  eighty-two 
Spaniards  were  slain.  To  this  loss  must  be  added  that  of  forty- 
two  horses,  kil'ed  by  the  Indians,  and  mourned  as  if  they  had 
been  so  many  fellow-soldiers."* 

The  havoc  among  the  Indians  was  almost  incredible.  Sev- 
eral thousands  are  said  to  have  perished  by  fire  and  sword. 
The  plain  around  the  village  was  strewed  with  more  than  twen- 
ty-five hundred  bodies.  Within  the  walls  the  streets  were 
blockaded  up  by  the  dead.  A  great  number  were  consumed 
in  the  burning  houses.  In  one  large  building  a  thousand  per- 
sons perished,  the  flames  having  entered  by  the  door,  and  pre- 
vented their  escape,  so  that  all  were  either  burned  or  suflbcated. 
The  greater  part  of  these  were  females. 

The  Indians  fought  with  desperate  courage.  They  had 
vowed  to  expel  the  invaders,  or  die  in  the  attempt.  Often, 
during  the  day,  victory  seemed  certain  in  their  favor ;  but  it 
was  as  often  snatched  from  them  by  tho  terrific  charges  of  the 
cavalry.  Still,  their  assaults  were  renewed  with  fresh  ardor, 
until  the  whole  field  around,  as  well  as  the  streets  of  the  town, 
were  covered  with  their  dead  bodies.  The  Spaniards  fought 
like  men  who  knew  that  they  must  conquer  or  die.     Had  it  not 

*  CotKiuest  of  Florida,  vol  u.,  chap.  vii.-ix.    See,  alio,  Williana'a  Florida,  p.  166-70. 


40 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  I. 


been  for  their  superior  arms  and  their  defensive  armor,  as  well 
as  their  excellent  cavalry,  not  one  Spaniard  would  have  lived 
to  witness  the  setting  sun. 

The  number  of  wounds  in  all  amounted  to  seventeen  hun- 
dred that  required  a  surgeon's  care,  being  those  about  the  joints 
and  other  parts  attended  with  danger,  besides  many  slighter 
ones  left  to  the  care  of  the  common  soldiers. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  the  Indians  used  bows  of  great 
size  and  strength.  So  heavy  were  they,  that  often,  when  close- 
ly pressed,  they  would  use  their  bows  as  clubs  over  the  heads 
of  the  Spaniards,  with  such  effect  as  to  cause  the  blood  to  flow 
freely  through  their  casques.  The  arrows  were  driven  with 
great  force,  so  as  often  to  inflict  severe  wounds  through  their 
coats  of  mail,  and  in  some  instances  to  penetrate  through  the 
eyes  and  mouth,  and  out  at  the  back  of  the  head.  Horses  that 
were  unprotected  were  covered  with  wounds,  and  many  of 
them  pierced  through  the  body  or  to  the  heart. 

It  may  appear  strange  that  the  Indians  engaged  around  the 
strong-hold  of  Mauvile  were  so  numerous ;  but  these  warriors 
were  collected  from  all  the  confederated  tribes  of  South  Ala- 
bama and  Mississippi,  as  well  as  Florida,  and  at  a  time  when 
those  tribes  were  far  more  populous  than  they  have  been  with- 
in the  past  century.  The  occasion,  too,  was  one  of  the  most 
momentous  which  had  occurred  in  their  history,  and  which 
called  the  warriors  from  the  most  distant  nations  to  make  com- 
mon cause  against  a  common  enemy. 

"  The  situation  of  the  Spaniards  after  the  battle  was  truly 
deplorable.  Most  of  them  were  severely  wounded  ;  all  were 
exhausted  by  fatigue  and  hunger.  The  village  was  reduced 
to  ashes  around  them,  and  all  the  baggage  of  the  army,  with 
its  supplies  of  food  and  medicine,  had  been  consumed  in  the 
houses."  Not  even  a  house  or  shed  remained  to  shelter  the 
wounded  from  the  cold  and  dew  of  the  night.  Temporary 
sheds  were  erected  against  the  remaining  walls  of  the  town, 
and  covered  with  branches  of  trees  and  bushes,  while  straw 
was  placed  for  their  beds.  Those  who  were  least  injured  ex- 
erted themselves  to  attend  and  relieve  those  who  were  severely 
wounded.  "  Those  who  were  able  to  bear  arms  patrolled  as 
sentinels,  and  maintained  a  vigilant  watch,  expecting  to  be  as- 
sailed" again  in  the  night.  "  Thus  they  passed  that  wretched 
night,  amid  bitter  lamentations  and  dying  groans." 


I 


A.D.  1540.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPL 


41 


After  eight  days  they  were  able  to  move  into  such  of  the  In- 
dian hamlets  as  were  found  in  the  vicinity,  where  they  contin- 
ued until  the  wounded  men  and  horses  were  able  to  march. 
During  this  time,  those  that  were  able  were  obliged  to  forage 
in  the  vicinity  to  procure  sustenance  for  the  men  and  horses. 
In  evc.-y  direction  they  found  dead  and  wounded  Indians,  who 
had  f5sc  iped  thus  far  after  the  carnage  of  the  eighteenth  of  Oc- 
tober. But  they  were  not  interrupted  again  by  the  savages 
while  they  remained  in  this  region.  The  whole  confederated 
tribes,  having  lost  most  of  their  choice  warriors  at  Mauvile, 
dared  not  attempt  to  renew  the  contest. 

Previous  to  the  battle  of  Mauvile,  De  Soto  was  advancing 
toward  the  south  to  meet  his  ships  with  stores  and  provisions 
at  the  Bay  of  Achusi,  now  known  as  Pensacola  Bay.  But 
the  disaster  of  Mauvile  wrought  deeply  upon  his  pride  and  am- 
bition ;  his  troops  were  becoming  discontented  and  mutinous. 
They  were  disappointed,  because,  instead  of  conquering  rich 
kingdoms  and  regions  abounding  in  gold  mines,  they  had  met 
with  nothing  in  Florida  but  one  privation  and  disaster  after  an- 
other, and  found  nothing  but  savage  wilds,  inhabited  by  the 
most  fierce  and  unconquerable  tribes.  They  had  now  been 
near  eighteen  months  in  quest  of  gold,  and  yet  they  were 
solaced  by  the  sight  of  no  such  metal.  Their  numbers  had 
been  greatly  diminished  by  hardships,  privation,  and  by  savage 
foes,  in  all  their  marches ;  and  for  a  month  before  they  reached 
Mauvile  a  malignant  disease  had  made  its  appearance  among 
them,  and  many  fell  victims  to  its  ravages.  The  elements,  the 
country,  and  the  natives  all  seemed  combined  against  them, 
and  they  sighed  to  reach  the  ships,  which  were  now  known  to 
have  arrived  at  the  Bay  of  Achusi,  only  seven  days'  march 
distant,  by  which  they  hoped  to  effect  their  escape  from  this  in- 
hospitable land.  De  Soto,  learning  all  this,  and  knowing  that 
his  followers  would  desert  him  in  hopes  of  obtaining  a  safe 
passage  to  Mexico  or  to  the  islands,  and  that  he  should  be  left 
blasted  in  reputation  and  fortune,  determined  to  frustrate  all 
such  calculations  by  speedily  plunging  into  the  depths  of  the 
forest  t(jward  the  north.  He  became  morose,  irritable,  and  dis- 
contented, and  seemed  anxious  to  finish  his  existence  far  from 
the  reach  of  his  friends  in  Havana,  unless,  by  persevering,  he 
might  yet  discover  the  object  of  his  ambition.  Accordingly, 
about  one  month  after  the  great  disaster  of  Mauvile,  finding 


48 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


that  his  horses  and  men  were  now  sufficiently  recovered  from 
their  wounds  to  travel,  he  set  out  on  his  march  toward  the 
north  near  the  last  of  November.  He  thus  determined  to  si- 
lence all  murmuring  and  complaint,  and  sternly  gave  orders  to 
prepare  to  march  northwardly,  and  punished  all  who  dared  to 
speak  of  the  sea  or  the  ships. 

After  five  days'  march  they  arrived  at  "  a  deep  and  wide  riv- 
er," which  was  in  all  probability  the  Tombigby,  below  the 
mouth  of  the  Black  Warrior.  This  they  crossed  after  much 
delay  and  hard  fighting  with  a  large  body  of  Indians,  who  dis- 
puted the  passage  for  twelve  days,  until  large  boats  were  con- 
structed to  ferry  the  army  across.  This  was  probably  in  Ma- 
rengo county,  Alabama,  not  far  from  Chickasft  Creek.  After 
this  they  marched  on  toward  the  northwest  for  five  days  more, 
when  they  came  to  another  river,  probably  the  Pearl,  which 
was  not  so  large  as  the  first.  Here  they  met  with  some  oppo- 
sition from  the  natives,  and  passed  on  in  the  province  of  Chica- 
sa,  within  the  state  of  Mississippi. 

De  Soto  in  Mississippi. — The  first  river  crossed  by  De 
Soto  and  his  army  after  leaving  Mauvile  was  "  a  deep  and 
wide  river,"  where  they  were  vigorously  opposed  by  a  large 
body  of  Indians,  who,  stationed  for  six  miles  on  the  western 
bank,  defeated  every  attempt  to  cross  for  twelve  days,  until 
the  Spaniards  had  completed  a  very  large  scow,  or  ferry-boat, 
in  which  many  of  the  infantry  and  cavalry  could  cross  at  each 
load.  Some  have  erroneously  supposed  this  was  the  Black 
Warrior  itself;  but  De  Soto  directed  his  general  course  west 
of  north  from  Mauvile,  and,  of  course,  he  would  not  reach  the 
Black  Warrior,  which  was  toward  the  northeast ;  besides,  the 
latter  river  does  not  answer  to  the  size  and  depth  of  the  first 
river  crossed  in  their  march  for  Chicasa. 

The  second  river  crossed  in  this  march  was  probably  the 
main  Pearl  River,  somewhere  in  Leake  county.  Thence  the 
course  was  more  toward  the  north ;  and  after  eight  or  ten 
days'  march  in  that  direction,  they  came  to  the  village  of  Chi- 
casa, situated  in  a  beautiful  plain,  fertile  and  well  watered, 
probably  in  the  valley  of  the  Yalobusha,  and  in  that  portion  em- 
braced in  Yalobusha  county.  The  expedition  arrived  at  this 
village  late  in  December,  about  one  month  after  its  departure 
from  Mauvile.  It  was  composed  of  about  two  hundred  small 
houses  or  wigwams,  which  were  abandoned  by  the  Indians  on 


[book  I. 

•ed  from 
mrd  the 
ed  to  si- 
)rders  to 
dared  to 

vide  riv- 
5I0W  the 
er  much 
who  dis- 
^ere  con- 
y  in  Ma- 
t.  After 
lys  more, 
rl,  which 
me  oppo- 
of  Chica- 

d  by  De 

deep  and 

y  a  large 

western 

[ays,  until 

rry-boat, 

s  at  each 

Ihe  Black 

rse  west 

each  the 

ides,  the 

the  first 

)ably  the 
jnce  the 
kt  or  ten 
of  Chi- 

i^atered, 

t-tion  em- 

at  this 

|eparture 

}d  small 
Idians  on 


A.o.  1541.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MIHSISSIPPI. 


43 


the  approach  of  the  Spaniards.  The  winter  had  now  set  in, 
and  the  weather  was  extremely  cold,  attended  with  snow  and 
ice.  De  Soto  determined  to  remain  in  the  village  until  spring. 
He  accordingly  built  other  houses,  as  the  number  then  existing 
were  insufficient  to  accommodate  all  his  men,  and  inclosed  the 
wliole  with  strong  pickets  and  other  means  of  defense  against 
any  sudden  attack  from  the  Indians.  The  neighboring  fields 
were  extensive,  and  there  was  no  scarcity  of  corn  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  army  and  horses.  This  was  supposed  by  the  Span- 
iards to  have  been  the  chief  town  of  the  Chicasa  Indians,  whose 
territory  extended  to  the  first  river  they  crossed  after  leaving 
Mauvile. 

[A.D.  1541.]  For  several  weeks  the  Spaniards  enjoyed 
comparative  quiet  from  Indian  hostility,  as  the  savages  appear- 
ed friendly,  and  did  not  venture  to  make  any  regular  attacks 
or  ambuscades.  At  length  the  continued  aggressions  from  the 
troops  in  their  foraging  excursions,  and  the  cruelties  inflicted 
on  those  captured,  impelled  them  to  hostilities,  for  the  purpose 
of  expelling  their  insolent  invaders.  Several  Indians,  who 
had  attempted  to  pillage  about  the  camp,  were  shot  to  death  ; 
others  had  their  hands  cut  off  by  De  Soto's  order,  and  were 
thus  dismissed  as  warnings  to  their  countrymen.  The  Span- 
iards, also,  were  now  endeavoring  to  secure  captives  to  serve 
as  slaves,  and  to  carry  the  baggage  in  their  further  march,  in- 
stead of  those  they  had  lost  at  Mauvile.  The  forbearance  of 
the  savages  was  at  length  exhausted,  and  they  determined 
to  punish  their  oppressors  at  the  peril  of  their  lives.  They 
began  to  make  frequent  false  attacks  at  night,  with  terrific  yells, 
to  harass  the  Spaniards,  as  well  as  to  place  them  ofl'  their  i^uard 
when  the  intended  main  attack  should  be  made.  Finally,  late 
in  February,  on  a  dark,  cold,  and  windy  night,  the  real  attack 
was  made,  as  usual,  with  terrific  yells,  the  blowing  of  conchs 
and  horns,  and  the  war-whoop  on  every  side  of  the  encamp- 
ment. Although  the  Spaniards  were  not  taken  by  surprise, 
still  it  proved  to  them  the  severest  disaster  which  had  yet 
befallen  them.* 

Battle  and  Conflagration  of  ChicasA. — It  was  at  a  late  hour 
of  the  night,  only  a  few  hours  before  day,  when  the  Indians 
advanced  in  three  divisions,  and  commenced  the  attack  on  all 
sides,  having  reached  the  inclosure  unperceived.    By  means 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  83-87. 


44 


IirSTORY    OF  TIIR 


[book  I. 


of  lighted  matches  attached  to  the  arrows  shot  from  their  bows, 
and  by  ropes  of  hay  set  on  fire  and  hurled  on  the  combustible 
roofs  made  of  reeds  and  straw,  the  whole  village  was  soon  on 
lire.  The  flames  were  spread  with  great  rapidity  by  the  wind, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  whole  encampment  was  one  scene  of 
flame  and  confusion.  The  Spaniards  were  mostly  roused  from 
their  slumbers  by  the  war-whoops  of  the  savages,  and  by  the 
flames  which  were  consuming  the  frail  tenements  over  them. 
Many  barely  escaped  with  their  lives,  and  without  their  clothes 
or  armor.  Bewildered  by  the  spreading  flames  and  the  horrid 
yells  and  assaults  of  the  savages,  the  flrst  object  was  self- 
preservation,  without  system  or  order.  As  soon  as  they  could 
prepare  to  act  on  the  defensive,  they  made  a  most  desperate 
resistance,  every  man  doing  his  utmost  to  repel  the  hosts  of 
savages  which  were  pressing  on  all  sides.  At  the  first  onset, 
many  of  the  horses  took  fright  and  escaped  into  the  plain,  and 
others  could  not  be  released  from  the  burning  stables  in  which 
they  were  haltered.  At  length  about  one  half  of  the  cavalry 
was  ready  for  action,  and  commenced  the  most  desperate 
charges  upon  the  thickest  bodies  of  the  Indians,  until  they  were 
dispersed.  But  several  hours  elapsed  before  they  were  en- 
tirely repulsed,  and  the  Spaniards  suffered  severely  in  every 
charge.  On  the  morning  their  whole  encampment  was  a  scene 
of  desolate  confusion,  and  they  themselves  were  in  the  most 
deplorable  condition. 

This  night  was  more  disastrous  to  the  Spaniards  than  even 
the  battle  of  Mauvile.  For  now,  not  only  their  baggage  and 
clothing  were  destroyed,  but  their  arms  were  burned  or  in- 
jured, and  they  had  inflicted  less  injury  upon  the  savages  than 
at  Mauvile,  while  they  suffered  almost  as  much  themselves. 

In  th'.s  engagement  and  conflagration,  the  Spaniards  lost  forty 
men  killed,  besides  some  burned  to  death ;  fifty  horses,  also, 
were  killed  or  burned  to  death.  Those  who  survived  this  ter- 
rible night  were  mostly  wounded  and  destitute  of  the  necessary 
clothing  for  the  season.  The  greater  part  of  their  herd  of 
swine  which  they  had  taken  with  them  were  consumed  in  the 
flames  of  a  large  shed,  covered  with  thatching,  in  which  they 
had  been  inclosed.  Theit  condition  was  truly  deplorable. 
They  were  now  nearly  three  hundred  miles  from  their  ships, 
with  impassable  rivers,  swamps,  and  savage  tribes  intervening, 
destitute  of  clothing,  half  armed,  and  surrounded  by  hostile 


A.D.   1541.]  VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


45 


savages  who  desired  their  extermination.  Their  courage  and 
fortitude  in  all  these  disasters  and  misfortunes  are  probably 
without  a  parallel  in  history.  But  it  was  chiefly  to  the  bold, 
adventurous,  and  unconquerable  spirit  of  Hernando  de  Soto 
that  they  were  conducted  through  all  these  diiiiculties  and  sus- 
tained in  all  their  privations. 

After  this  disaster,  the  army  soon  removed  to  another  village 
about  three  miles  distant,  called  Chica^illa,  where  they  fortified 
themselves  and  remained  until  the  last  of  March.  Here  they 
employed  themselves  in  repairing  and  making  saddles,  re- 
tempering  their  swords  which  had  been  injured  by  the  fire,  in 
making  lances,  and  shields  of  hides,  and  also  in  manufacturing 
a  coarse  fabric  for  clothing ;  for  many  were  almost  naked,  and 
others  had  only  skins  and  other  garments  taken  from  the  In- 
dians. During  the  whole  time  they  remained  in  Chica^iila, 
they  were  harassed  with  coniinual  attacks  by  the  Indians,  and 
were  obliged  to  keep  out  a  strong  guard  all  night  to  prevent 
another  conflagration  of  their  camp. 

About  the  flrst  of  April,  De  Soto  broke  up  his  winter-quar- 
ters, and  set  out  again  toward  the  northwest.  The  first  day's 
march  westward  brought  them  to  the  vicinity  of  a  strongly  for- 
tified town  called  Alibamo,  or,  as  the  Portuguese  narrator 
writes  it,  Alimamu.  This  is  the  town  from  which  the  River 
Alabama  takes  its  name.  It  was  situated  on  the  east  bank  of 
a  deep  but  narrow  river,  with  high  banks,  in  all  probability  the 
same  now  known  as  the  Tallahatchy,  and  probably  not  far 
above  the  junction  of  the  Yalobusha.  This  fortress  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  triple  wall  of  pickets  and  earth,  in  a  quadran- 
gular form,  about  four  hundred  yards  on  each  side,  and  inter- 
sected by  other  strong  picket  walls  on  the  inside.  The  whole 
was  a  very  strong  post,  and  so  constructed  as  to  prevent  the 
free  operation  of  the  cavalry  should  they  once  gain  an  entrance. 

The  next  day  this  post  was  regularly  attacked  and  carried 
by  storm,  with  the  slaughter  of  a  large  proportion  of  the  gar- 
rison. The  Indians,  as  usual,  fought  with  great  courage  to 
the  last ;  but  when  the  Spaniards  gained  admission,  they  hewed 
down  th6  savages  with  the  most  dreadful  carnage,  taking  am- 
ple vengeance  for  their  sufferings  at  Chicasa.  Vast  numbers 
werejikewise  slain  by  the  cavalry  in  the  pursuit.  The  Span- 
iards lost  fifteen  men  killed,  besides  many  who  were  severely 
wounded.  i„»  . 


46 


HISTORY    OF   THR 


[book  I. 


The  Spaniards  remained  in  camp  four  days  to  recruit  their 
strength  and  for  the  recovery  of  the  wounded.  Their  next 
march  was  westward ;  and  crossing  the  river  at  an  easy  ford, 
they  left  the  province  of  Chicasa.  "For  seven  days  they 
traversed  an  uninhabited  country,  abounding  in  swamps  and 
forests,  wliere  they  were  often  compelled  to  swim  their  horses 
in  the  route.  At  length,  they  came  in  sight  of  a  village  called 
Chisca,  seated  near  a  wide  river.  As  this  was  the  largest 
river  they  had  yet  seen,  they  called  it  the  ♦  Rio  Grande.'  It 
was  the  same  now  called  the  Mississippi." 

De  Soto  may  be  said  to  have  been  the  first  European  who 
beheld  the  magnificent  river  which  rolled  its  waters  through 
the  unbroken  forest  and  splendid  vegetation  of  a  wide  and  deep 
alluvial  soil.     The  lapse  of  three  centuries  has  not  changed  the 
character  of  the  stream.     It  was  then  described,  as  it  now  is, 
as  more  than  a  mile  in  width,  flowing  with  a  strong  current, 
and  by  the  weight  of  its  waters  forcing  a  channel  of  great 
depth.     The  water  was  described  as  being  always  muddy,  and 
trees  and  timber  were  continually  floating  down  the  stream.* 
Since  their  departure  from  the  fortress  of  Alibamo,  the  Span- 
iards had  traversed  a  vast  and  dense  forest,  *•  intersected  by 
numerous  streams ;"  doubtless  the  creeks  and  bayous  of  the 
Tallahatchy  region.     Wearied  in  the  toilsome  march,  they 
remained  several  days  in  camp  at  the  village  of  Chisca,  near 
the  Great  River.     "  The  river  was  low,  and  both  banks  were 
high."     Incessantly  harassed  by  the  hostility  of  the  natives, 
they  resumed  the  line  of  march  up  the  eastern  bank,  during 
four  days ;  yet  such  was  the  tangled  nature  of  the  wooded 
country,  that  they  advanced  only  twelve  leagues  in  four  days. 
Having  found  an  open  region,  they  encamped  until  boats  should 
be  built  ibr  crossing  to  the  western  side.     Twenty  days  were 
required  to  build  them  in  suflicient  size  and  number  to  trans- 
port the  army  and  horses.     No  sooner  were  the  boats  complet- 
ed than  De  Soto  began  to  cross  his  army  to  the  western  shore. 
Here  new  troubles  were  encountered.     By  this  time  a  large 
body  of  savages  had  assembled  on  the  opposite  bank,  while 
others  swarmed  upon  the  water  in  their  war  canoes  to  dispute 
the  passage.     The  neighboring  streams  and  bayous  commu- 
nicating with  the  river  were  covered  with  the  savage  fleet, 
and  aflbrded  to  them  secure  retreats.     The  courage  and  en- 

*  Conqueit  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  96,  90. 


A.D.   1641.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE   MIBBIBSIPPI. 


47 


terprisc  of  De  Soto  did  not  desert  him  here.  He  at  length 
succeeded,  with  the  aid  of  a  friendly  chief,  in  obtaining  for  his 
whole  army  a  safe  passage. 

"At  this  place,"  says  the  Portuguese  historian,  "the  river 
was  half  a  league  from  one  shore  to  the  other,  so  that  a  man 
standing  still  could  not  be  seen  from  the  opposite  shore.  It 
was  of  great  depth,  and  of  wonderful  rapidity.  It  was  very 
muddy,  and  was  always  filled  with  floating  trees  and  timber, 
carried  down  by  the  force  of  the  current." 

Much  doubt  and  uncertainty  Las  obtained  as  to  the  precise 
point  at  which  De  Soto  reached  th>i  Mississippi.  It  was  evi- 
dently much  below  the  latitude  of  Memphis,  where  he  was 
toiling  four  days  in  advancing  twelve  leagues  up  the  river, 
and  seven  days  in  his  westward  march,  through  swamps  and 
deep  forests,  from  the  uplands  east  of  the  Tallahatchy.  At  no 
point  above  Helena  are  the  highlands,  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river,  more  than  ten  or  fifteen  miles  distant.  The  point  where 
De  Soto  crossed  the  river  was  probably  within  thirty  miles  of 
Helena.  The  changes  of  the  channel  in  the  lapse  of  three  hun- 
dred years  may  have  been  such  as  to  defy  identification  now. 


^s  were 
trans- 
smplet- 
shore. 
large 
while 
dispute 
ommu- 
e  fleet. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  SPANISH    EXPEDITION  WEST  OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. A.D.   1541 

TO  1543. 

Argument. — Do  Soto  arrives  upon  the  Bonks  of  White  River. — Incidents  and  Rcligioai 
Ceremonies.— De  Soto  joins  an  Indian  King  in  a  liostilc  Expedition. — Mart^lies  with 
him  Northoant  to  the  Mississippi,  near  Helena. — Arrives  at  the  Town  of  Cnpaha. — 
Present  Ilcmains  of  Capahu. — He  returns  to  White  River,  and  thence  resumes  hia 
Marcli  to  tlic  West. — Winters  higli  up  the  Arkansas  in  a  cold  Latitude. — DiiHcultiea 
and  Disasters  there. — Returns  to  the  Mississippi  in  tlie  Spring. — Disasters  begin  to 
multiply. — He  determines  to  leave  the  Country  by  descending  the  River. — Now  Hos- 
tilities by  the  Natives. — Difllcultics  increase,  and  Perplexities  prey  upon  the  iron 
Soul  of  De  Soto. — He  sickens  and  dies. — Affecting  Scene  before  his  Death. — He  is 
finally  de])08ited  in  the  Mississippi,  near  the  Mouth  of  the  Arkansas. — His  Eulogium. — 
Louis  de  Moscoso  succeeds  to  the  Command. — Ho  marclics  Westward  in  search  of  the 
Mexican  Settlements. — His  fruitless  Search. — Returns  to  the  Mississippi. — Spends 
the  Winter  and  Spring  iu  Preparations  fur  a  Departure  down  the  River. — Conunenccs 
building  Brigantines  for  descending  the  River. — He  is  greatly  anhoyed  by  hostile  In- 
dians.— Perilous  Descent  of  the  River  in  Boats  and  Brigantines. — Dangerous  Voyage 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. — The  Remnant  of  the  Expedition  reach  the  Spanish  Settle- 
ments of  Mexico. — Reflections. 

[A.D.  1541.]     De  Soto  in  Arkansas. — The  whole  expedition 
having  saliely  crossed  to  the  west  side  of  the  river,  the  boats 


48 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


were  broken  up  for  the  nails  and  iron,  and  the  army  prepared 
to  advance  northwestward  into  the  interior  of  what  is  now  the 
State  of  Arkansas.  After  nearly  five  days'  march  through  a 
level  wilderness  country,  intersected  in  many  ])laces  with 
streams,  bayous,  and  lakes,  many  of  which  were  not  fordable, 
they  descried  a  large  Indian  village  containing  about  four 
hundred  dwellings.  It  was  situated  on  the  banks  of  a  river, 
bordered,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  with  luxuriant  fields 
of  corn,  and  fruit-trees  of  different  kinds.*  This  town  was  oc- 
cupied by  the  tribe  of  Casqui,  or  Casquin ;  and  the  river  upon 
which  it  was  situated,  in  all  probability,  was  White  River, 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  above  its  junction  with  the 
Mississippi.  They  remained  at  this  place  six  days,  during 
which  they  were  kindly  supplied  by  tiie  natives  with  all  kinds 
of  food.  They  then  set  out  for  the  chief  town,  or  residence,  of 
the  cacique,  which  was  situated  upon  the  same  side  of  the 
river,  abuut  two  days'  march  above  the  first  town.  In  this  dis- 
tance, they  passed  through  a  beautiful  rolling  country,  which 
was  less  alluvial  than  any  they  had  j)assed  since  they  left  the 
highlands  east  of  the  Tallahatchy.  They  were  received  by  the 
cacique  and  all  his  people  with  much  ceremony  and  kindness. 
It  was  late  in  the  month  of  May,  and  the  weather  was  fine, 
but  very  warm.  There  had  been  no  rain  for  many  weeks, 
and  the  corn  in  the  fields  was  beginning  to  sufl!er  fi'om  drought. 
After  several  days,  the  cacique,  with  his  attendants,  came  to 
De  Soto  with  great  solemnity,  and  desired  him  to  pray  to  his 
God  that  he  would  send  rain  upon  their  parching  fields,  as  they 
had  entreated  the  Great  Spirit  in  vain.  De  Soto  promised  to 
intercede  in  their  favor  for  rain.  He  accordingly  directed  his 
carpenters  to  construct  a  very  large  cross ;  and,  at  the  end  of 
two  days  and  much  labor,  a  cross  fifty  feet  high,  and  made 
from  a  pine-tree,  was  erected.  The  next  morning  the  formal 
ceremony  of  intercession  was  to  take  place.  The  whole  tribe 
was  to  be  assembled  to  witness  the  ceremony  from  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  river. 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day,  the  Spaniards  formed  a 
great  and  solemn  procession,  with  the  priests  in  front,  chant- 
ing psalms  and  hymns.  The  most  profound  silence  and  so- 
lemnity pervaded  the  whole  Indian  hosts,  as  well  as  those  who 
joined  in  the  procession.     The  procession,  consisting  of  more 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  voL  ii.,  p.  104-110. 


I 


A.D.   1541.] 


VALLKV    OF    THE    MIHHIflHirpr. 


tilun  a  thousand  persona,  including  many  Indians,  advancod 
slowly  in  front  of  the  cross,  and  there  all  silently  knelt  upon 
:ho  gn^und,  while  two  or  three  fervent  prayers  were  otlercd 
up  by  the  priests.  After  which  the  whole  pro(;ession  arose, 
two  and  two  at  a  tune,  advanced  to  the  foot  of  the  cross, 
Dowed  the  knee,  and  kissed  the  holy  emblem.  In  returning, 
the  siuuo  order  was  preserved,  and  the  ceremonies  closed  with 
chanting  a  "  Te  Deum  Ltiudamus." 

It  so  happened  that  on  the  following  night  the  rain  jjoured 
down  abundantly ;  as  the  Spanish  historian  says,  "  To  show 
those  heathen  that  God  doth  hearken  to  those  who  call  on 
him  in  truth."  Next  day  the  savages,  to  the  number  of  thou- 
sands,  moved  by  fervent  gratitude  to  God  for  this  favor,  formed 
themselves  into  a  procession  before  the  cross  in  token  of  their 
gratitude,  and  the  cacique  expressed  his  grateful  feelings  to 
De  Soto  for  his  kind  intercession.  De  Soto,  in  the  true  spirit 
of  Christianity,  directed  him  to  '*  thank  God,  who  had  created 
the  heavens  and  the  earth,  and  who  was  the  bestower  of  these 
and  other  far  greater  mercies."* 

Having  remained  nine  or  ten  days,  enjoying  the  bountiful 
hospitality  of  this  noble  savage,  De  Soto  set  out  toward  the 
north  and  east,  escorted  by  the  cacique  and  several  thousand 
of  his  warriors.  After  marching  three  days  through  open  lands. 
"  they  came  to  a  great  swamp,  rising  on  the  borders,  with  a 
lake  in  the  center  too  deep  to  be  forded,  and  whicli  formed  a 
kind  of  gulf  on  the  Mississippi,  into  which  it  emptied  itself." 
Two  days  more  brought  them  to  some  elevated  ridges,  beyond 
which  they  beheld  the  chief  town  of  the  Capaha  tribe.  This 
town,  which  contained  five  hundred  houses,  was  situaTod  on  an 
elevated  piece  of  land,  nearly  surrounded  by  a  deep  bayou, 
which  communicated  with  the  Mississippi,  or  "  Rio  Grande," 
nine  miles  distant  from  the  town.  Here  the  Cacique  Casqui 
and  his  warriors,  who  were  in  advance  of  the  Spaniards,  by 
committing  the  most  inhuman  cruelties  involved  the  Spaniards 
in  the  most  dangerous  hostility  with  the  tribe  of  Capaha.  After 
narrowly  escaj)ing  utter  destruction  from  this  warlike  tribe,  it 
required  the  utmost  of  De  Soto's  tact  and  finesse  to  bring  about 
a  reconciliation  with  the  chief  and  his  warriors.  Having 
finally  succeeded,  the  army  was  hospitably  received  and  en- 
tertained by  the  cacique  for  several  days. 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  Ill-US. 
Vol.  I.— D 


50 


HIHTORY   or  THE 


[book  I. 


The  town  of  C'apnhii,  in  nil  prohuhility,  was  situated  u  few 
miles  south  of  the  present  town  of  Helena,  in  Arkansas,  upon 
the  west  bank  of  the  Mississippi.*  The  changes  in  the  river 
channel  since  that  time  may  have  obliterated  the  ancient  land- 
marks, and  have  thrown  the  river  several  miles  further  west 
at  this  particular  point.  The  numerous  old  river  lakes  on  the 
east  side  of  the  river  are  facts  which  cf»rroborate  the  infer- 
ence. The  low  grounds  west  of  the  Mississippi,  which  were 
traversed  by  De  Soto  In  this  portion  of  his  nuuches,  corre- 
spond well  with  the  present  region  of  the  White  Uiver  delta, 
and  its  tributary  Big  Creek. 

In  further  confirmation  of  the  inference  that  De  Soto  crossed 
the  Mississippi  near  this  point,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the 
present  geography  of  the  country  in  the  vicinity  of  Helena, 
which  will  abundantly  satisfy  him  of  its  correctness.     Helena 
is  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  ten  miles  by  the  river  below 
the  mouth  of  the  St.  Francis  River,  and  twenty  miles  above 
the  "  Horse-shoe  Bend,"  or  eighty  miles  above  the  mouth  of 
White  River.     It  is  situated  on  alluvial  ground,  which  de- 
scends gently  back  to  a  low,  boggy,  cypress  bayou,  which  me- 
anders within  a  few  rods  of  the  town,  and  near  the  base  of  the 
uplands,  which  rise  fifty  or  sixty  feet  above  the  alluvion.     This 
bayou  takes  its  origin  from  an  old  river-lake  near  the  blufls,  a 
few  miles  above  Helena,  and  winds  on  about  fifteen  miles 
below  the  town,  where  it  unites  with  the  river  at  "  Horse-shoe 
Bend."     Upon  this  bayou,  which  is  called  "  Old-town  Bayou," 
about  eight  miles  below  Helena,  are  foOnd  the  remains  of  a 
large  Indian  town.     These  remains  consist  of  mounds,  embank- 
ments, and  bricks  of  antique  appearance  and  form.     They  are 
doubtless  the  remains  of  the  old  Indian  town  CapahA. 

The  striking  resemblance  in  the  general  features  of  the  coun- 
try about  the  Arkansas,  White  River,  and  the  St.  Francis,  com- 
pared with  that  on  Red  River,  the  Washita,  and  the  River  au 
BcEuf,  or  the  Tensas,  as  regards  the  general  description  of 
rivers,  swamps,  and  high,  rolling  lands,  has  been  the  cause  of 
much  doubt  and  uncertainty  among  those  who  have  attempt- 
ed to  trace  the  route  of  the  Spanish  army.  Some  have  sup- 
posed that  their  first  sojourning  and  marches  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi was  principally  in  the  vicinity  of  New  Madrid ;  some 
that  it  was  near  the  Arkansas ;  and  others  that  it  must  have 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii,  p.  115-1S4. 


lOOK  I. 

II  few 
,  upon 
3  river 
t  lund< 
r  west 
on  the 
I  infer- 
li  were 
corre- 
r  delta, 

[grossed 
I  to  the 
[lelena, 
Helena 
■  below 
I  above 
outh  of 
lich  de- 
lich  ine- 
e  of  the 
.     This 
blufls,  a 
n  miles 
se-shoe 

ilVOU," 

ns  of  a 
mbunk- 
jhey  are 

le  coun- 
|is,  com- 
jiver  au 
Ition  of 
lause  of 
[ttempt- 
re  sup- 
le  Mis- 
,  some 
1st  have 


A.D.   1541.]  VAM.KY    or   TIIK   MlflrilHSim. 


51 


l)epn  n«  low  down  ns  lied  ,  vcr.  This  latter  opinion  is  main- 
tained by  Jud^'t*  Martin  in  \\m  "  History  of  Louisiana."  In  this 
he  is  most  probably  in  error. 

While  in  the  territcMry  of  Capalm,  De  Soto,  having  heard  of 
a  region  to  the  norti'  wliure  suit  aboimdcd,  and  where,  proba- 
biy,  gold  might  be  Iniind,  Nent  two  Spaniards  with  Indian 
gui<les  to  asccrtaih  'he  prospects.  After  eleven  days  they  re- 
tiniied,  having  been  about  one  hundred  leagues  northwest, 
through  a  barren  and  hilly  region  abounding  in  bufl'aloes. 
They  brought  a  suj)ply  of  rook  salt  and  some  copjHjr,  but  found 
no  gold.  Discouraged  by  this  intelligence.  Do  Si»to  determin- 
ed to  bp'nr  more  toward  the  west.  He  finally  returned  to  the 
village  ui'  Cascjui,  probably  on  White  River,  and  thence,  after 
a  few  days'  rest,  ihey  advanced  down  the  river,  marching 
through  a  fertile  and  populous  country  for  several  days,  or 
about  one  hundred  miles,  t(»  the  principal  town  of  Quigate,  where 
lie  arrived  on  the  4th  of  August.  This  town  nuist  have  been 
on  White  River,  about  forty  or  filly  miles  above  its  mouth. 

Mr.  Irving  says,  "  From  Quigate  De  Soto  shaped  his  course 
to  the  northwest,  in  search  of  a  province  called  Coligoa,  lying 
at  the  foot  of  mountains,  beyond  which  he  thought  there  might 
be  a  gold  region.  After  a  march  of  several  days  through  dreary 
forests  and  frequent  marshes,  they  came  to  the  village  of  Coli- 
goa, on  the  margin  of  a  small  river."  This  must  have  been 
the  Big  Meto  Creek,  about  fifty  miles  southeast  of  Little  Rock. 

At  Coligoa,  De  Soto  learned  that  the  country  to  the  north 
was  thinly  inhabited  by  Indians,  but  that  vast  herds  of  buffa- 
loes ranged  the  country,  and  that  toward  the  sotuh  there  was 
a  populous  and  fertile  country  called  Cayas.  Toward  this 
country  his  march  was  next  directed.  After  nine  days'  march, 
having  passed  a  large  river,  he  came  to  a  village  called  Tan- 
ico,  in  the  Cayas  country.  Here  he  found  salt  springs,  and  re- 
mained some  days  making  salt,  for  want  of  which  both  men 
and  horses  had  been  suffering  much.  He  was  now  probably 
on  the  head  waters  of  Saline  River,  a  branch  of  the  Washita. 
From  Tanico  their  march  was  next  directed  westward,  and 
after  several  days'  march  through  a  wilderness  country,  they 
reached  the  chief  town  of  the  Tula  tribe,  situated  between  two 
streams,  probably  the  Upper  Ouachita  and  Little  Missouri. 
Here  the  Spaniards  were  severely  handled  by  the  natives,  who 
proved  the  fiercest  tribe  they  had  yet  seen,  for  even  the  wom- 


HIUTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


en  fought  as  fiercely  as  the  men.  Some  of  their  men  having 
been  killed,  and  many  severely  wounded,  they  were  obliged  to 
remain  here  twenty  days,  until  the  wounded  were  able  to  march. 
In  the  mean  time,  several  exploring  parties  were  sent  in  differ- 
ent directions ;  the  country  was  populous,  and  the  buffaloes 
were  plenty.* 

Having  heard  of  the  country  of  Autiamque,  or  Utiangue,  to- 
ward the  north,  or  northwest,  the  march  was  next  thither.  The 
distance  was  about  two  hundred  and  thirty  or  forty  miles  by 
the  route  marched  over.  "Five  days  of  thtir  journey  was 
over  a  rough,  mountainous  country,  closely  wooded."  At 
length  they  reached  the  chief  town  of  Utiangue,  after  almost 
incessant  skirmishes  and  ambuscades  on  the  march.  The  town 
**  contained  numerous  well-built  houses,  and  was  situated  in  a 
fine  plain,  watered  by  a  wide,  running  river,  the  same  tliat  pass- 
ed through  the  province  of  Cayas." 

This  "  wide,  running  river"  was  doubtless  the  Arkansas,  the 
same  river  crossed  by  them  in  their  march  southward  three 
months  before ;  and  the  portion  of  the  river  upon  which  this 
village  was  situated  most  likely  was  not  more  than  fifty  miles 
below  Crawford  court-house,  in  the  State  of  Arkansas. 

The  town  of  Utiangue  was  found  deserted  by  the  Indians ; 
but  they  had  left  it  well  supplied  with  corn,  beans,  dried  fruit, 
and  nuts.  The  country  in  the  vicinity  was  fertile  and  well 
cultivated,  and  the  forest  abounded  in  game ;  yet  the  winter 
had  already  set  in  with  great  severity.  The  expedition  was 
now  on  the  north  side  of  the  Arkansas  River,  not  far  from  the 
western  boundary  of  the  present  State  of  Arkansas,  in  latitude 
about  36°  north ;  they  were  exposed  to  the  full  force  of  the 
bleak  winds  which  swept  down  from  the  great  western  desert. 
De  Soto  determined  to  take  uj)  his  winter-quarters,  and  fortify 
the  village  against  the  inroads  of  the  savages. 

[A.D.  1542.]  The  winter  continued  to  increase  in  severity, 
and  the  earth  was  covered  with  heavy  falls  of  snow.  "  At  one 
time  the  Spaniards  were  blocked  up  for  more  than  a  month, 
until  at  last  fire-wood  began  to  fail  them,"  and  all  hands,  with 
the  horses,  were  compelled  to  turn  out  to  open  the  way,  and 
beat  a  path  through  the  snow  to  a  neighboring  forest  for  a  sup- 
ply of  fuel. 

While  in  this  country,  they  were  exceedingly  harassed  by 

*  Conqueat  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  196-130. 


A.D.  1542.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPrL 


A8 


the  fierce  natives,  who  would  entertain  no  friendship,  nor  make 
any  compromise  with  them.  During  the  winter  the  chief  in- 
terpreter, Juan  Ortis,  who  had  been  obtained  in  Florida,  died. 
This  was  a  severe  loss  to  the  army,  as  he  had  been  the  only 
means  by  which  any  thing  like  an  intelligible  communication 
could  be  had  with  the  native  chiefs.  Now  this  imperfect  com- 
munication was  destroyed ;  the  Indian  interpreters  were  com- 
paratively ignorant  of  the  Spanish  language ;  hence,  in  their 
subsequent  marches,  they  were  led  into  many  errors  and  mis- 
understandings with  the  Indians,  not  only  as  to  countries,  dis- 
tances, routes,  and  rivers,  but  into  many  serious  difficulties  of 
another  nature.  De  Soto  began  to  despair  of  finding  gold  ;  he 
saw  the  difficulties  that  were  gathering  about  him,  and  disas- 
ters had  broken  down  his  spirits.  Bitterly  did  he  repent  having 
left  the  region  near  the  sea-coast,  of  which  none  of  the  tribes  he 
had  seen  for  the  last  ten  months  could  give  any  information. 
He  was  now  in  the  midst  of  a  vast  wilderness,  surrounded  by 
hostile  tribes  ;  he  had  lost  nearly  half  his  men  from  war,  or 
they  had  perished  from  hardships,  disease,  and  accident  of  va- 
rious kinds ;  the  greater  part  of  his  horses  had  been  killed,  or 
had  perished  from  the  same  causes ;  and  the  remainder  were, 
many  of  them,  lame  and  unfit  for  service,  and  had  been  with- 
out shoes  for  more  than  a  year.  "  He  was  now  too  far  from 
the  sea  to  attempt  reaching  it  by  a  direct  march ;  but  he  de- 
termined to  give  over  his  wanderings  in  the  interior,  and  make 
the  best  of  his  way  back  to  the  Rio  Grande,  or  Mississippi. 
Here  he  would  choose  some  suitable  village  on  its  banks  for  a 
fortified  post,  and  establish  himself,  until  he  could  build  vessels 
to  descend  the  river,  and  in  these  send  some  of  his  most  trusty 
men  to  Cuba  with  tidings  of  his  discoveries,  and  who  should 
return  with  re-enforcements  of  men  and  horses,  as  well  as  of 
every  ihing  necessary  to  establish  a  colony,  and  secure  pos- 
session of  the  vast  country  they  had  discovered."* 

As  soon,  therefore,  as  the  winter  was  sufficiently  over,  he 
broke  up  his  winter-quarters  at  Utiangue,  and  marched  toward 
the  Mississippi.  After  several  days'  march  along  the  river  on 
the  south  side,  they  halted  ten  days  at  an  Indian  town,  until 
they  built  boats,  and  crossed  the  v.  nole  army  over  to  the  north 
or  east  side.  This,  probably,  he  did  to  reach  the  Mississippi 
near  the  point  where  he  had  left  it.     Their  advance  thence 

*  Conqueat  of  FloriUa,  vol  ii.,  cliap.  zxv.  and  xxvi. 


M 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


was  "  through  a  low  region,  and  perplexed  with  swamps,"  so 
that  the  troops  were  often  to  the  stirrups  in  mud  and  water, 
and  sometimes  were  obliged  to  swim  their  horses.  At  length, 
after  several  days'  march,  they  came  to  the  village  of  Anilco, 
situated  on  "  the  same  river  that  passed  through  the  provinces 
of  Cayas  and  Utiangue."  There,  learning  that  there  was  a  pop- 
ulous and  fertile  country  not  far  below  the  junction  of  these 
two  great  rivers,  he  determined  to  proceed  toward  it,  in  hopes 
the  sea  might  be  at  no  great  distance.  The  chief  town,  Gua- 
choya,  he  learned,  was  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Mississip- 
pi, and  this  would  be  a  suitable  place  for  him  to  remain  wh>le 
building  his  vessels.  He  accordingly  crossed  the  river  at  Ainl- 
00  to  the  south  side,  and,  after  a  march  of  four  days  over  a 
hilly,  uninhabited  country,  arrived  at  the  village  of  Guachoya, 
on  the  Mississippi,  about  twenty  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the 
Arkansas.  It  was  situated  on  two  hills,  one  or  two  hundred 
yards  from  the  river,  and  contained  about  three  hundred  hous- 
es, and  was  fortified  around  with  strong  palisades.  De  Soto 
took  possession  of  the  town,  and  finally  succeeded  in  establish- 
ing terms  of  amity  with  the  chief.  Here  he  made  diligent  in- 
quiry for  the  sea,  but  could  gain  no  information.  He  at  length 
sent  an  exploring  party  down  the  river  to  seek  tidings  of  the 
sea ;  but  after  eight  days*  absence  they  returned,  having  ad- 
vanced only  forty-five  miles,  "  on  account  of  the  great  wind- 
ings of  the  river,  and  the  swamps  and  torrents  with  which  it 
was  bordered."  Thus  it  seems  that  the  river  was  full,  and 
many  sluices  were  putting  out  into  the  swamps  and  filling  the 
bayous.     It  was  now  about  the  last  of  May,  1542. 

Death  of  De  Soto. — While  at  Guachoya,  De  Soto  was  inde- 
fatigable in  urging  preparations  for  fitting  out  his  brigantines 
with  dispatches  to  Cuba  for  supplies  and  re-enforcements.  To 
sustain  his  army  during  this  time,  it  was  requisite  he  should 
find  some  country  which  had  not  been  exhausted  by  them. 
For  this  purpose,  one  of  his  detachments  crossed  to  the  cast 
side  of  the  Mississippi,  to  a  province  which  was  said  to  be  fer- 
tile and  populous,  and  inhabited  by  a  warlike  tribe.  They 
-  .und  it  even  so ;  the  chief  village  contained  five  hundred 
houses;  the  cacique  was  exceedingly  hostile,  and  threatened 
destruction  to  the  Spaniards  if  they  presumed  to  violate  his 
territory.  The  Spaniards,  knowing  their  own  weakness  and 
defenseless  condition,  used  every  eflbrt  to  conciliate  him  and 


A.D.  1642.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


55 


gain  his  friendship ;  but  all  in  vain.  In  return  fur  all  his  en- 
treaties and  proffers  of  friendship,  De  Soto  was  compelled  to 
submit  to  taunts  and  gross  insults,  which,  two  years  before, 
would  have  been  resented  by  the  most  active  warfare.  Find- 
ing that  the  tribe,  of  which  this  cacique  was  chief,  worshiped 
the  sun,  De  Soto,  anxious  to  avoid  hostilities,  and  to  receive 
their  aid,  sent  a  message  to  the  cacique,  and  informed  him  that 
he  and  the  Spaniards  were  children  of  the  sun,  and  desired 
from  him  a  visit  as  from  a  brother.  But  the  haughty  chief  re- 
turned the  scornful  answer,  "  Tell  him,  if  he  he  the  child  of  the 
sun,  to  dry  up  the  river,  and  I  will  come  over  and  do  homage  to 
him." — "  But  De  Soto's  spirits  were  failing  him  ;  he  had  brood- 
ed over  his  past  error,  in  abandoning  the  sea-coast,  until  he 
was  sick  at  heart ;  and,  as  he  saw  the  perils  of  his  situation  in- 
creasing, new  and  pow  erful  enemies  springing  up  around  liim, 
while  his  scanty  force  was  daily  diminishing,  he  became  anx- 
ious for  the  preservation  of  the  residue  of  his  followers,  and  de- 
sired to  avoid  all  further  warfare."  A  melancholy  had  seized 
upon  his  spirits,  while  the  incessant  fatigue  of  body  and  anxiety 
of  mind,  together  with  the  influence  of  the  climate,  brought  on 
a  slow,  wasting  fever,  which  at  length  confined  him  to  his  bed. 
Still,  De  Soto  was  the  vigilant  commander,  and  from  his  sick- 
bed gave  all  the  necessary  orders,  and  directed  all  the  plans 
of  movement.  But  his  labors  and  anxieties  were  fasi  coming 
to  a  close ;  and  being  conscious  of  the  near  approach  of  death, 
he  prepared  himself  to  die  like  a  soldier  and  a  devout  Catholic. 
Having  made  his  will,  and  with  great  solemnity  appointed  and 
installed  Luis  de  Moscoso  as  his  successor,  he  called  all  his 
faithful  officers  to  liim,  two  and  two,  and  bade  them  an  affec- 
tionate farewell ;  begged  ft  rgiveness  if  at  any  time,  in  the  dis- 
charge of  ilia  duty,  he  had  been  harsh  toward  them ;  and  ex- 
horted them  to  remain  true  to  the  king,  courageous  and  affec- 
tionate to  one  another ;  he  thanked  them  for  the  fidelity  and 
constancy  with  which  they  adhered  to  his  fortunes,  and  ex- 
pressed deep  regret  that  it  was  not  in  his  power  to  reward  them 
according  to  their  merits. 

He  next  called  to  him  his  soldiers,  according  to  their  rank, 
by  twenties,  and  in  like  manner  bade  them  adieu,  with  his 
blessing.  He  \pired  the  next  day,  being  about  the  fifth  of 
June.  * 

"  Thus  died  Hernando  De  Soto,  one  of  the  bravest  of  the 


56 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


A.I 


many  brave  leaders  who  figured  in  the  first  discoveries,  and 
distinguished  themselves  in  the  wild  warfare  of  the  Western 
World.  How  proud  and  promising  had  been  the  commence- 
ment of  his  career !  How  humble  and  hapless  its  close  !  Cut 
off  in  the  very  vigor  and  manhood  of  his  days,  at  the  age  of 
forty-two  years  ;  perishing  in  a  strange  and  savage  land,  amid 
the  din  and  tumult  of  a  camp,  and  with  merely  a  few  rough 
soldiers  to  attend  him,"  while  all  were  anxiously  engaged  in 
devising  means  of  escape  from  their  perilous  condition  in  those 
inhospitable  wilds.* 

The  death  of  De  Soto  overwhelmed  his  hardy  veterans  with 
sorrow ;  they  had  followed  him  nearly  four  years ;  and  in  all 
their  sufferings  he  had  suffered  with  them,  and  led  them  on 
through  dangers  which  he  equally  shared.  They  mourned 
for  him  as  for  a  father ;  and  so  much  the  more,  because  they 
could  not  give  him  a  burial  and  such  obsequies  as  were  due 
his  birth  and  rank :  they  also  feared  lest  his  remains  should  be 
insulted  by  the  Indians  after  he  was  buried.  The  hostile  In- 
dians had  been  in  the  habit  of  searching  for  the  bodies  of  Span- 
iards who  had  been  buried ;  and  when  found,  ihey  would  quar- 
ter them,  and  set  them  upon  posts  and  trees  as  trophies.  How 
much  more  eager  would  they  be  for  the  governor's  body  ?  To 
prevent  this,  they  sought  a  retired  spot  near  the  village,  where 
many  pits  and  holes  rendered  the  ground  untven;  there  they 
buried  him  sccrfitly  at  tiie  dead  hour  of  the  night.  To  conceal 
his  grave  from  the  Indians,  they  prepared  the  ground  as  if  for 
a  place  of  parade,  and  gave  out  word  to  the  Indians  that  the 
governor  was  fast  recovering  from  his  illness.  Finding,  how- 
ever, that  the  Indians  suspected  not  only  the  death,  but  the 
burial-place  of  the  governor,  they  determined  to  remove  the 
body  to  a  place  of  greater  security :  accordingly,  the  next 
night  they  disinterred  it,  and  placed  it  in  a  strong  and  heavy 
coffin,  made  by  excavating  a  cut  of  green  oak,  over  the  aper- 
ture of  which  they  nailed  a  strong  plank.  The  body,  thus  in- 
closed, was  taken  with  great  secrecy  to  the  middle  of  the 
Mississippi,  or  "  Rio  Grande,"  and  sunk  in  nineteen  fathoms 
of  water.  Thus  the  first  discoverer  of  the  Mississippi  made 
his  grave  in  the  bosom  of  its  waters.f 

No  one  was  better  qualified  than  De  Soto  to  rule  the  hardy 
spirits  under  him.     He  was  stern  in  command  ;  agreeable  in 

*  Conqncst  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  chap,  xxvii.  t  Idem,  p.  170. 


his 
co» 
fie 

SOI 
OUf 

ev( 


w 


A.D.  1542.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISBIPPL 


57 


his  common  intercourse ;  lenient  to  mild  offenses ;  gentle  and 
courteous  in  his  manners ;  patient  and  persevering  under  dif- 
ficulties ;  and  encouraging  to  those  inclined  to  despond.  Per- 
sonally, he  was  valiant  in  the  extreme,  and  with  such  a  vigor- 
ous arm,  that  he  is  said  to  have  hewn  for  himself  a  lane  when- 
ever he  was  pressed  in  battle.  He  became  severe  with  the 
Indians ;  but  a  sense  of  necessity  and  danger  caused  him  to  be 
such.  Under  the  influence  and  operation  of  those  feelings, 
which  xvere  entertained  by  the  Spaniards  no  less  than  by  the 
"  Pilgrims"  of  New  England,  more  than  a  hundred  years  af- 
terward, the  poor  savages  were  considered  as  scarcely  enti- 
tled to  the  rights  of  humanity.* 

The  March  of  Moscoso  West  of  the  Mississippi. — Luis  de 
Moscoso,  having  succeeded  to  the  command  of  the  remnant 
of  De  Soto's  army,  soon  called  a  council  of  his  officers  to  de- 
liberate upon  the  best  course  to  be  pursued.  Having  received 
vague  rumors  from  the  Indians  that,  far  to  the  west,  there  were 
other  Spaniards  roving  from  country  to  country,  fighting  and 
conquering  the  Indians,  he  concluded  that  they  were  his  coun- 
trymen in  Mexico,  which  might  not  be  very  remote.  He  ac- 
cordingly abandoned  the  plan  of  De  Soto,  of  descending  the 
river  to  the  sea,  and  determined  to  reach  Mexico  by  land. 

The  expedition  accordingly  set  out  for  the  west  t.bout  the 
middle  of  June.  They  passed  near  the  salines  of  the  Wachita 
River,  where  they  tarried  and  supplied  themselves  with  salt. 
Leaving  this  region,  they  pushed  their  march  forward,  and 
passed  through  the  country  of  the  Naguatax,  now  written 
Natchitoches,  and  which  appears  to  have  been  high  up  Red 
River,  in  the  southwest  corner  of  the  State  of  Arkansas.  At 
length,  after  nearly  three  months,  they  came  upon  Red  River, 
in  the  barrens  north  of  the  present  country  of  Texas.  In  their 
marches,  they  were  often  misled  and  lost,  and  frequently  were 
involved  in  bloody  skirmishes. f 

Continuing  the  march  south  of  De  Soto's  route,  they  passed 
through  a  country  abounding  in  buffaloes  ;  beyond  which  they 
passed  a  sterile  region,  and  came  in  sight  of  mountains,  where 
the  country  was  almost  uninhabited.  Here  they  halted,  and 
sent  light  exploring  parties,  who  penetrated  in  every  direction 
nearly  ninety  miles  further,  and  returned  with  information  that 


*    See  New  Enijlond  Wars  wich  Indians  ;  King  Philip's  War ;  Mauler's  Magnalia ; 
General  Cliuich's  Campaigns.  t  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  183-188. 


58 


HISTORY    OF   TIIR 


[book  I. 


the  country  grew  worse  as  they  advanced.  In  this  region  the 
natives  lived  in  camps,  scattered  over  the  country,  and  de- 
pended upon  hunting,  fishing,  and  upon  fruits,  roots,  and  herbsi 
for  their  precarious  subsistence.  These  were  evidently  the 
early  a»  cestors  of  the  Pawnees,  Camanches,  and  other  roving 
tribes  of  the  West,  who  are  the  Tartars  of  North  America.* 

It  was  now  late  in  October,  and  they  had  been  nearly  five 
months  making  their  way  across  from  the  Mississipp',  and  had 
traversed  regions  which  are  unknown  ;  and  still  they  knew  not 
where  they  were.  Moscoso  called  a  council  of  his  officers  to 
determine  what  was  best  to  be  done :  mucli  debate  arose ; 
many  proud  njid  high-minded  cavaliers  declared  they  would 
prefer  perishing  in  the  wilderness  to  retiu*ning  to  their  friends 
in  Europe  and  the  West  Indies,  beggared  and  miserable,  from 
an  expedition  undertaken  with  such  high  and  vaunting  antici- 
pations. It  was,  however,  determined  at  length  to  return,  and 
retrace  their  steps  to  the  Mississippi.  Yet  their  return  to  the 
Mississippi  presented  only  a  dreary  prospect  to  the  wearied 
and  forlorn  adventurers,  without  the  relief  of  novelty.  The 
savage  tribes,  numerous  and  hostile,  were  chafed  by  former 
wrongs,  and  sought  the  opportunity  for  ample  revenge.  The 
country',  exhausted  and  devastated  in  their  advance,  could  af- 
ford them  but  little  succor  in  their  retreat.  They  returned  by 
forced  marches,  in  order  to  avoid  preconcerted  attacks  by  sav- 
ages apprised  of  their  approach.  To  avoid  these  attacks,  and 
the  danger  of  ambuscades,  they  were  induced  to  march  all  day 
and  a  great  portion  of  the  night.  Still  they  encountered  al- 
most daily  attacks,  in  open  skirmishes  or  in  ambuscades. 
The  Indians  would  waylay  the  road,  and  infest  the  rear ;  at 
night  they  would  lurk  about  the  camp,  and  shoot  down,  with 
their  arrows,  every  soldier  that  chanced  to  leave  the  lines ; 
and  often,  under  the  darkness  of  night,  they  would  creep  upon 
their  hands  and  knees,  and  shoot  down  the  sentinels  on  their 
posts. 

Before  they  reached  the  vicinity  of  the  Arkansas  (for  they 
struck  across  to  that  river^  ihe  winter  had  set  in,  and  the  cold 
was  severe  ;  heavy  drenching  rains  were  frequent ;  the  cold 
winds  benumbed  them ;  yet,  in  their  eagerness  to  reach  the 
Mississippi,  they  pushed  forward  in  all  kinds  of  weather,  trav- 
eling all  day,  and  encamping  at  night,  often  drenched  with  rain 

*  Conquest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  198-200. 


A.D 


anc 


^ 


A.D.  1542.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MIS3ISBIPPI. 


50 


and  covered  with  mud :  still,  they  had  afterward  to  sally  forth 
in  quest  of  food,  at  the  imminent  peril  of  their  lives.     At  night, 
too,  they  often  had  no  place  to  lie  down,  the  ground  being  cov- 
ered with  mud  and  water  from  rains  and  the  inundation  of  the 
streams,  which  were  all  full  to  overflowing.     Sometimes,  in- 
deed, they  were  obliged  to  remain  in  low,  wet  places,  where 
the  infantry  were  nearly  knee-deep  in  water,  and  the  lancers 
remained  upon  their  horses.     With  all  this,  they  were  nearly 
naked  ;  all  their  European  clothing  had  been  burned  or  lost  at 
the  two  great  fires  and  battles  of  Mauvile  and  Chicasa,  except 
the  tattered  garments  on  their  backs.     Their  clothing  now  con- 
sisted principally  of  skins  belted  around  their  bodies  and  over 
their  shoulders  ;  they  were  mostly  bare-legged,  and  without 
shoes  or  sandals;  sometimes  they '.ad  made  moccasins  of  skins 
after  the  manner  of  the  Indians. 

Besides  all  these  sufferings  and  privations,  they  were  often 
detained  on  the  bank  of  a  bayou,  or  river,  for  several  days  be- 
fore they  could  pass.     The  streams  being  full,  they  had  to  make 
rafts  and  floats,  upon  which  to  cross,  during  the  whole  time 
harassed  by  swarms  of  Indians  on  both  sides.     Under  these 
privations  and  sufferings,  together  with  hearts  and  spirits  bro- 
ken with  fatigue  and  disappointments,  both  men  and  horses  be- 
gan to  sicken  and  die.     Every  day  twi^,  three,  and  at  one  time 
seven,  Spaniards  fell  victims  to  the  hardships  of  the  journey. 
There  were  no  means  of  carrying  the  sick  and  dying,  for  many 
of  the  horses  were  infirm,  and  those  that  were  well  were  re- 
served to  repel  the  constant  attacks  of  the  enemy.     The  sick 
and  exhausted,  therefore,  dragged  their  steps  forward  as  long 
as  they  could,  and  often  died  by  the  wayside  ;  while  the  sur- 
vivors, in  their  haste  to  press  onward,  scarce  paused  to  give 
them  burial,  leaving  them  half  covered  with  earth,  and  some- 
times entirely  unburied. 

At  length  they  reached  the  Mississippi,  not  far  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Arkansas.  At  the  sight  of  it  the  hearts  of  the 
poor  wayworn  Spaniards  leaped  within  them  for  joy,  for  they 
considered  it  the  highway  by  which  they  were  to  escape  out 
of  this  land  of  disappointment,  privation,  and  disaster.  They 
determined  to  winter  here,  and  make  preparation  to  descend 
the  Mississippi  to  the  sea,  in  order  to  reach  Mexico  or  some 
of  the  West  India  Islands. 

Here  they  took  possession  of  an  Indian  fortified  town,  more 


60 


HISTORY    OP    TUB 


[book  I. 


A.D. 


by  the  good  will  of  the  Indians  than  by  their  own  strength. 
The  noble  and  chivalrous  army  of  De  Soto  had  been  reduced, 
by  war,  disease,  and  famine,  from  one  thousand  to  about  tnree 
hundred  and  fifty  men,  in  less  than  three  years  and  a  half  of 
wandering  over  the  unknown  regions  of  the  southwest.  They 
had  set  out  with  high  expectations  in  search  uf  gold,  of  riches, 
and  fume,  and  had  found  disasters,  privations,  and,  must  of  them, 
a  grave,  in  a  savage  land,  as  their  only  reward. 

[A.D.  1543.]  Departure  of  the  Spanish  Expedition. — As  has 
been  remarked  before,  Moscoso,  in  his  retrograde  march  from 
the  west,  reached  the  Mississippi  River  not  far  above  the  mouth 
of  the  Arkansas.  His  men,  worn  out  with  i)rivations  and  fa- 
tigue, rejoiced  that  they  had  rearhpd  the  vicinity  of  the  village 
of  Aminoya,  where  they  had  expected  to  enjoy  the  comforts  of 
peace  and  plenty.  This  hope  had  cheered  up  the  last  days  of 
their  march,  although  human  nature  had  l)cen  almost  exhaust- 
ed with  fatigue,  famine,  and  privation.  But  many  of  them 
gained  this  place  of  refuge  only  to  rest  and  die.  The  stimu- 
lus of  anxiety,  hope,  and  active  life  being  remitted,  they  sunk 
into  a  state  of  lethargy  and  slow  fever,  of  which  nearly  fifty 
died  in  a  few  days.  Afterward,  having  become  comfortably 
situated,  the  remainder  began  to  recover  their  strength  and 
spirits.  They  soon  began  to  make  preparations  for  finally 
leaving  the  country,  where  they  had  found  nothing  but  disaster 
and  death.  Moscoso  determined  to  build  seven  brigantines, 
during  the  winter  and  spring,  and  in  them  to  descend  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  the  sea,  and  thence  seek  the  Spanish  settlements  in 
Cuba  or  Mexico.  There  remained  among  the  remnant  of  the 
expedition  one  ship-carpenter  and  several  other  mechanics. 
These  were  employed  in  getting  out  timber  for  the  vessels, 
and  every  soldier  assisted  in  one  capacity  or  another.  Two 
large  sheds  were  first  erected  to  protect  the  workmen  from 
rain,  cold,  and  storms.  Iron  of  every  kind  was  gathered  up  to 
make  nails ;  the  fire-arms,  which  had  become  useless  for  want 
of  powder,  and  even  the  iron  stirrups  of  the  troopers,  were  giv- 
en up ;  the  captives  were  released,  and  their  chains  and  fetters 
were  wrought  into  nails.  Hopes  were  made  from  grass  and 
bark  furnished  by  the  Indians.  Other  materials  were  prepar- 
ed and  wrought  by  others,  and  each  man  seemed  emulous  to 
excel  in  the  aid  he  .  nould  contribute  to  the  completion  of  the 
vessels.     The  It.  ..ans  among  whom  they  were  sojourning 


A.D.  1543.] 


VALLRV    OF    THE    MltirilBSlPPI. 


Gl 


were  hospitable  and  kind,  and  furnished  every  thing  which  they 
could  toward  their  support  and  comfort.* 

But  the  hostile  chief  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  who  con- 
ducted himself  so  haughtily  toward  De  Soto  in  the  previous 
spring,  still  maintained  his  hostile  attitude.  His  fears  were 
excited  by  the  large  vessels  which  his  enemies  were  building 
so  near  his  dominions,  and  which  he  readily  supposed  were  in- 
tended to  operate  against  his  little  fleet  of  pirogues.  He  ac- 
cordingly used  great  exertion  to  form  an  extensive  league  with 
the  neighboring  tribes,  with  the  design  of  exterminating  their 
common  enemy  at  one  decisive  blow.  The  Spaniards,  appris- 
ed of  the  designs  of  the  natives,  doubled  their  industry  and 
vigilance  to  nvoid  surprise  and  massacre.  A  sudden  rise  in 
the  river,  however,  by  inundating  the  low  grounds,  prevented 
the  attack  of  the  savages  at  the  appointed  time.  After  two 
months,  the  river  having  slowly  subsided  within  its  banks,  the 
Indians  again  prepared  to  put  their  plans  into  execution.  Mos- 
coso  having  detected  the  treachery,  as  he  supposed,  inflicted 
great  cruelties  upon  such  of  the  hostile  Indians  as  fell  into  his 
hands.  On  one  occasion  he  caused  the  right  hands  of  thirty  to 
be  cut  ofl*,  and  sent  them  back  to  their  chief  with  this  mutila- 
tion for  their  supposed  treachery.  The  Indians  continued  their 
preparations  for  the  extermination  of  their  cruel  invaders  with 
unabated  ardor. 

Moscoso,  fmding  his  situation  becoming  daily  more  perilous, 
urged  on  the  completion  of  his  vessels,  and  made  every  prep- 
aration for  a  speedy  departure.  All  the  remaining  hogs  were 
killed  and  made  into  bacon,  and  twenty  of  the  least  valuable 
of  the  horses  were  slaughtered  for  the  voyage.  The  vessels 
being  nearly  completed,  a  sudden  rise  of  the  river  greatly  fa- 
cilitated the  lanching.  The  vessels  were  merely  large  open 
barques,  with  bulwarks  of  plank  and  hides  around  the  gun- 
wales, to  i)rotect  the  men  from  the  Indian  arrows.  The  horses, 
of  which  only  thirty  remained,  were  likewise  protected  in  boats, 
alongside  the  brigantines,  with  similar  bulwarks.  All  things 
being  ready,  the  Indian  captives,  to  the  number  of  thirty,  were 
discharged  ;  the  remainder  had  perished  in  the  toilsome  march- 
es from  exposure,  fatigue,  and  hunger. 

Having  taken  an  affectionate  leave  of  the  friendly  chiefs  and 
their  people,  Moscoso  and  his  companions  embarked,  and  com- 

•  Conqnest  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  217-218. 


02 


lIlaTORV    OP   TUB 


[OOOK  I. 


mitted  themselves  to  iU^f  Mississippi  on  the  second  of  July, 
1543. 

The  numerous  and  gallant  host  of  De  Soto  had  dwindled 
down  to  less  than  three  hundred  and  fifty  men ;  their  armor, 
r>nce  brilliant,  was  now  battered  and  rusty ;  their  rich,  silken 
garments  were  now  reduced  to  rags  and  tatters ;  and  some  were 
covered  with  skins  like  the  native  savages ;  with  hopes  once 
so  buoyant,  they  were  now  forlorn,  and  despair  was  depicted 
in  every  countenance.  This  was  the  concluding  piece  of  the 
great  drama  in  which  they  had  been  engaged.  Having  wan* 
dered  long  in  unknown  lands,  and  among  savage  tribes, "  they 
now  were  about  to  exchange  the  dangers  of  the  wilderness  for 
the  dangers  of  the  world  of  waters.  They  wern  now  embark- 
ing upon  a  vast  and  unknown  river,  leading  they  knew  not 
whither ;  they  were  to  traverse,  in  frail  barques,  without  chart 
or  compass,  great  wastes  of  ocean  to  which  they  were  strang- 
ers, bordered  by  savage  coasts,  in  the  vni^ue  hope  of  reaching 
some  Christian  shore,  on  which  they  would  land  as  beggars."* 

They  at  length  were  under  weigh,  but  had  not  floated  far, 
when  they  ascertained  that  the  hostile  chiefs  had  assembled  all 
their  forces  some  distance  below  to  dispute  the  passage  down 
the  river.  This  was  a  new  source  of  anxiety.  They,  howev- 
er, proceeded,  and  were  soon  engaged  in  skirmishes  with  par- 
ties of  the  Indian  canoes.  Two  days  after  they  embarked, 
they  came  in  sight  of  the  combined  Indian  fleet,  consisting  of 
a  great  number  of  canoes,  ha"5'ing  from  fourteen  to  twenty-four 
paddles  each,  and  carrying  from  thirty  to  seventy  men.  The 
warriors  were  painted  in  the  fantastic  colors  so  common  among 
Indians,  and  the  pirogues  carried  them  with  great  rapidity 
through  the  waters.  For  nearly  two  days  they  followed  and 
hovered  near  the  Spanish  brigantines,  with  war  songs  and 
deafening  yells.  About  noon,  the  second  day,  the  Indian  fleet 
made  a  disposition  to  attack,  and  formed  themselves  into  three 
divisions,  the  van,  center,  and  rear.  One  division  at  a  time 
would  glide  rapidly  past  the  brigantines,  discharging,  as  they 
passed,  a  shower  of  arrows,  by  which  many  of  the  Spaniards 
were  wounded,  in  spite  of  their  breast-work  of  hides  and  boards. 
Each  division,  in  like  manner,  made  their  successive  charges, 
amid  the  terrific  sound  of  their  yells  and  war  songs.  They 
continued  to  hang  upon  the  Spaniards,  harassing  them  in  this 

*  Couqueat  of  Florida,  vol.  ii.,  p.  S34-338. 


A.D.  1543.] 


VALLEY    OP    TUB    MlflfllMIPPI. 


03 


manner,  with  continual  attacks,  during  the  cvewinji;  and  the 
greater  part  of  the  night.  The  attacks  were  renewed  next 
day,  and  continued  at  intervals  for  several  days  and  nights, 
until  the  Spaniards  were  worn  out  with  fatigue  and  anxiety. 
During  this  time,  although  protected  by  the  breast-work  of 
boards  and  skins,  and  by  shields  made  of  skins  and  double 
nnats,  to  resist  the  arrows,  yet  nearly  every  one  was  wounded. 
The  horses,  so  well  protected,  were  all  killed  but  eight. 

At  length  the  Indians  desisted  from  their  attacks,  and  hov- 
ered along  at  the  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half  or  two  miles  in 
the  rear.  The  Spaniards,  supposing  they  had  given  up  the 
contest,  drew  up  to  shore,  and  landed  one  hundred  men  at  an 
Indian  village  to  forage.  No  sooner  had  they  entered  the  vil- 
lage with  the  eight  horses,  than  the  Indian  fleet  began  to  ad- 
vance rapidly,  and  a  host  of  savages  from  the  woods  rushed 
toward  the  village,  so  that  they  were  barely  able  to  escape  to 
their  vessels,  leaving  the  horses  on  shore,  where  they  were 
soon  shot  to  death  by  Indian  arrows.  When  the  Spaniards 
saw  them  thus  slaughtered  before  their  eyes,  they  wept  as  for 
their  own  children. 

On  the  sixteenth  day  of  their  voyage,  while  the  Indian  fleet 
was  still  hovering  in  sight,  an  unfortunate  freak  in  five  fool- 
hardy young  men  caused  the  loss  of  forty-eight  men,  slain 
by  the  savages.  These  five  men,  without  authority,  and  un- 
known to  the  governor,  manned  a  j)irogue  and  put  ofl*  raj)idly 
toward  the  enemy,  in  order  to  taunt  and  defy  them.  The  fact 
being  known  to  Moscoso,  he  immediately  dispatched  fifty  men 
in  three  pirogues  to  bring  them  back,  with  a  full  determination 
to  hang  the  leader  as  soon  as  he  came  on  board-.  But  the  lat- 
ter, supposing  his  daring  had  been  approved,  and  that  the  de- 
tachment was  sent  to  support  his  daring  enterprise,  pressed 
forward  with  all  might  to  the  Indian  fleet.  The  Indians  fell 
back,  in  order  to  draw  them  further  from  the  brigantines ; 
when,  suddenly  advancing  in  three  divisions,  they  made  a  furi- 
ous attack,  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  whole  detachment  was 
surrounded  and  completely  cut  oft*  by  the  savages  ;  only  seven 
escaped  to  the  brigantines.  Thus  Fate  seemed  still  to  pursue 
tlie  unfortunate  adventurers  with  unnecessary  disasters,  result- 
ing alone  from  their  own  rashness  and  folly. 

At  the  end  of  twenty  days  from  their  embarkation  on  the 
river,  they  arrived  in  sight  of  the  open  sea  ;  and,  after  coasting 
westward  for  fifty  days,  amid  perils  by  sea  and  by  land,  they 


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64 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


arrived  at  the  town  of  Panuco,  on  the  coast  of  Mexico.  Here 
they  were  kindly  received  by  the  Spanish  inhabitants,  who 
were  touched  with  pity  at  beholding  this  forlorn  remnant  of  the 
gallant  armament  which  had  caused  so  muchjoy  in  its  depart- 
ure from  Cuba. 

They  remained  twenty-five  days  at  Panuco ;  but  the  soldiers 
became  gloomy  and  despondent  at  their  situation ;  their  proud 
hearts  revolted  at  the  idea  of  being  objects  of  charity,  and 
many  affected  a  desire  to  return  to  Florida,  which  now,  out  of 
sight,  presented  itself  to  their  imaginations  as  the  most  fertile 
country  on  earth,  and  possessed  of  many  advantages  not  less 
valuable  than  gold  itself.  In  the  contemplation  of  these,  for  a 
time  their  sufferings  and  misfortunes  were  forgotten. 

The  viceroy  sent  for  them  to  Mexico,  where  they  were 
treated  with  great  kindness  and  attention  by  the  people ;  yet 
they  became  morose,  despondent ;  and,  as  disappointed  men 
do,  they  entertained  much  ill  will,  and  mostly  entered  the 
armies  of  Mexico  and  Peru,  hoping  there  to  retrieve  their 
fortunes. 

Such  was  the  end  of  the  romantic  and  chivalrous  expedition 
of  Hernando  de  Soto  within  the  early  limits  of  Florida. 

We  have  given  more  in  detail  the  expedition  and  invasion 
of  De  Soto,  because  it  was  decidedly  the  most  extensive,  as 
well  as  the  first  exploration  of  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi. 
Some  have  affected  to  consider  the  whole  expedition  too  much 
characterized  by  romance  and  fiction  to  merit  entire  belief; 
but,  independent  of  the  internal  evidence  which  abounds  in  the 
narrative,  it  is  corroborated  and  sustained  by  the  same  weight 
of  testimony  which  we  have  in  the  account  of  the  conquest  of 
Mexico  and  Peru  by  Cortez  and  Pizarro. 

In  all  the  devious  marches  and  wanderings  of  the  chival- 
rous band  of  De  Soto,  for  nearly  four  years,  through  the  vast 
regions  east  and  west  of  the  Mississippi,  they  exhibited  the 
same  unfeeling  cruelty  to  the  natives,  and  the  same  insatiable 
thirst  for  gold  and  plunder,  which  so  strongly  marked  the  con- 
querors of  Mexico  and  Peru.  When  they  found  the  savages 
poor  or  destitute,  they  plundered  them  of  their  little  all,  and 
then  tortured  them  because  they  had  no  gold.  The  natives,  at 
first  friendly  and  hospitable,  and  comparatively  unarmed,  were 
compelled,  by  their  exactions  and  cruelty,  to  make  common 
cause  against  their  proud  invaders,  although  clothed  in  steel, 
and  apparently  armed  with  the  thunderbolts  of  Jove. 


A.D.  1544.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


65 


CHAPTER  V. 

EARLY  EXTENT  AND  SETTLEMENTS,  WITH  THE  SUBSEaUENT  BOUN- 
DARIES AND  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  FLORIDA. A.D.  1544  TO  1845. 

Argument. — Extent  of  £  lorida  in  1560. — Spanish  Missions  and  Settlements. — Ribault's 
French  Colony  in  1562. — Its  Location  on  the  Combahee  River.— Destruction  of  the 
Colony. — Landonnier's  French  Colony  in  l.')64. — "Fort  Carolina"  built  on  the  St. 
Mary's.— Destitute  Condition  of  this  Colony. — Timely  Relief  by  Ribault. — Melendez  is 
Adelantado  of  Florida  in  1565.— He  exterminates  the  French  Colony. — St.  Augixstinc 
founded. — Degourges  ravages  the  Spanish  Colony  and  captures  the  Forts. — Jesuit 

.  Missionaries  introduced  by  Melendez. — Missions  established  in  1584. — St.  Augustine 
plundered  by  Sir  Francis  Drake. — First  Attempts  at  English  Settlement,  in  1585  and 
1608.— English  Colony  of  Virginia. — Carolina  granted  to  Lord  Clarendon  and  others. — 
St.  Augustine  plundered  in  1665  by  Captain  Davis,  an  English  Pirate. — English  Set- 
tlement at  "  Cliarlestown,"  in  1679. — French  Colonists  arrive  in  Carolina,  1785-6.— 
Resti-icted  Limits  of  Florida.— Spanish  Settlements  invaded  by  the  English  from 
Carolina.— Partisan  Warfare  continued.— Pensacola  settled  in  1696.— Boundary  be- 
tween Floridaand  Louisiana.- English  Boundaries  of  Florida  in  1764.— English  Set- 
tlements in  Flonda.— Tumbull's  Colony  of  New  Smyrna.— His  inhuman  Tyranny.— 
Wretched  Condition,  and  subsequent  Liberation  of  his  white  Slaves. — English  Ag- 
riculture in  Florida. — Florida  retroceded  to  Spain  in  1783. — Extent  of  Florida 
claimed  by  Spain. — Extent  claimed  by  the  United  States. — Claim  of  United  States 
under  the  Purchase  of  Louisiana.— Baton  Houge  District  annexed  to  the  State  of 
Louisiana.— Fort  Charlotte  and  Mobile  District  surrendered  in  1813. — Florida  re- 
stricted to  die  Perdido  on  the  West.— Revolt  and  Occupancy  of  East  Florida  by 
"Patriots"  in  1812. — Spain  fails  to  preserve  the  Neutrality  of  Florida  during  the 
War  with  Great  Britain— Woodbines  Operations  among  the  Seniinoles  of  Florida 
after  the  War.— He  builds  a  Negro  Fort  on  die  Appalachicola. — Negroes,  Arms, 
Munitions,  and  Military  Stores  iumished  from  the  British  Fleet. — The  Patriots  of 
South  America  again  occupy  Amelia  Island  in  1817.  —  The  Seminole  War  com- 
mences.  General  Jackson  prosecutes  it  successfully. —  Captures  St.  Mark's. — Ar- 

buthnot  and  Ambrister  condemned  and  executed. — Their  righteous  Sentence  and 
deserved  Fate. — Jackson  marches  to  Pensacola  and  expels  the  perfidious  Spaniards. — 
He  retires  to  private  Life. — His  Traits  of  Character. — Florida  ceded  to  the  United 
States  in  1819. — Terms  of  Cession. — General  Jackson  is  first  American  Governor, 
civil  and  militarj',  of  the  Province. — Collision  with  Governor  Calleava. — The  first 
Grade  of  Territorial  Government  organized  in  1822. — Indians  removed  from  Middle 
Florijia  in  1824. — The  second  Grade  organized  in  1825. — Advance  of  white  Popula- 
tion until  1835. — Hostilities  by  the  Mickasnkie  Indians.-Military  Movements  and  Op- 
erations.— Horrible  Massacre  of  Major  Dade's  Detaclunent. — Indian  Murders  at 
Fort  King. — Commencement  of  the  "  Florida  War." — Gradual  Removal  of  the  Semi- 
noles  West  of  the  Mississippi.— Increase  of  white  Population  until  1844.— State  Con- 
stitution formed. — The  State  of  Florida  admitted  into  the  Union  in  1845. 

[A.D.  1544.]  From  the  close  of  the  disastrous  expedition 
of  De  Soto,  Florida  for  many  years,  as  claimed  by  Spain,  em- 
braced all  the  Atlantic  coast  as  far  north  as  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence,  where  the  French  had  made  some  unsuccessful 
attempts  to  plant  colonies.  No  other  European  power  pre- 
tended to  claim  the  coast  from  Cape  Sable  on  the  south,  to  the 

Vol.  I.— E 


66 


HISTORY    OF   THB 


[book  I. 


Bay  of  Fundy  on  the  north ;  nor  did  they  attempt  to  establish 
colonies  within  these  boundaries.  For  more  than  twenty  years 
after  the  death  of  De  Soto,  Florida  was  abandoned  by  the 
crown  of  Spain  as  a  vast  wilderness  province,  too  poor  for 
conquest,  and  therefore  unworthy  of  her  arms.  The  fate  of  De 
Soto  and  his  gallant  army  had  convinced  all  that  it  was  idle 
to  dream  of  rich  empires  in  the  interior,  where  gold  and  silver 
were  the  plunder,  and  where  fame  and  conquest  were  the  re- 
wards of  the  ambitious  brave.  The  dread  instilled  by  the  fierce 
natives,  and  the  insalubrity  of  the  climate,  had  cooled  the  ardor 
of  those  who  aspired  to  honor  and  wealth  in  Florida. 

[A.D.  1560.]  Nearly  twenty  years  after  De  Soto  traversed 
Eastern  Florida,  a  few  zealous  Catholic  missionaries  attempted 
to  plant  the  cross  at  several  points  along  the  Atlantic  coast  of  the 
peninsula  of  Eastern  Florida.  They  formed  missionary  settle- 
ments at  St.  Augustine  and  at  other  points  on  the  St.  John's 
River.  The  attempt,  although  hazardous,  was  not  altogether 
in  vain.  Some  lost  their  lives  by  disease ;  but  others  braved 
the  inhospitable  climate,  and  refused  to  abandon  the  holy  un- 
dertaking, willing  to  sacrifice  their  lives  in  extending  the  king- 
dom of  Christ. 

[A.D.  1562.]  Next,  by  necessity,  a  portion  of  the  same  vast 
region  became  the  refuge  of  those  who  fled  from  the  persecu- 
tion and  intolerance  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Calvinism  had 
spread  widely  in  Europe,  and  had  threatened  the  universal 
power  of  the  pope.  To  check  the  spread  of  Calvin's  heresy 
and  the  light  of  the  Reformation,  an  unrelenting  persecution 
was  urged,  with  all  the  power  and  influence  of  the  See  of  Rome. 
None  distinguished  themselves  more  by  their  unchristian  and 
intemperate  zeal  in  a  rigorous  persecution  of  the  Calvimsts 
than  the  bishops  of  France.  Thousands  of  the  best  citizens 
and  most  enlightened  men  were  compelled  to  abjure  Calvinism 
or  leave  the  country,  in  order  to  avoid  persecution  unto  death. 

Under  these  circumstances,  Admiral  Coligny,  a  patron  of 
the  French  Calvinists,  undertook  to  establish  a  colony  of  refu- 
gees upon  the  coast  of  Florida,  north  of  any  Spanish  settlement. 
The  colony  embarked  under  the  command  of  John  Ribault,  an 
experienced  mariner.  They  set  sail  on  the  18th  day  of  Febru- 
ary, 1562,  in  two  of  the  king's  ships,  and  first  made  land  in  the 
latitude  of  St.  Augustine.*     Advancing  northwardly,  they  dis- 

*  See  WilUanu's  Florida,  p.  169 ;  alio,  ManhairB  Life  of  Waahiugton,  Introduction. 


A.D.  1564.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSIBHIPPI. 


67 


covered  the  River  St.  Mary's,  and,  having  spent  a  portion  of 
the  nnonth  of  May  on  its  banks,  they  called  it  the  "  River  of 
May."  It  was  not  until  nearly  two  centuries  afterward  that 
this  river  was  recognized  by  Spain  as  the  northern  limit  of 
Florida  upon  the  Atlantic  coast. 

After  a  short  stay,  finding  themselves  within  the  limits  of  the 
Spanish  missionary  settlements,  they  determined  to  sail  further 
north.  Their  next  settlement  was  made  a  few  miles  above 
the  St.  Helena  Sound,  south  of  the  Combahee  River,  and  within 
the  present  limits  of  South  Carolina.  Here  Riba*  ',  erected  a 
fort,  which  he  called  Fort  Carolana,  in  honor  of  Charles  IX. 
of  France.  Having  organized  the  colony  and  made  suitable 
preparation  for  their  safety  and  comfort,  he  set  sail  about  the 
15th  of  July  for  France,  to  report  his  success.  He  left  M. 
Albert  as  his  lieutenant,  and  twenty-six  of  his  crew  to  keep 
possession  of  the  fort.  Political  confusion  and  distraction  in 
France  withdrew  his  attention  from  the  colony  for  near  two 
years.  Dunng  this  time,  the  lieutenant,  Albert,  cultivated  the 
friendship  of  the  natives,  who  supplied  the  colony  liberally  with 
such  articles  as  they  possessed.  Every  exertion  was  used  by 
him  to  restrain  the  avarice  and  licentiousness  of  the  people. 
In  his  efforts  to  enforce  justice  to  the  Indians,  he  was  met  by 
a  mutiny,  in  which  he  lost  his  life.  Lachan,  a  turbulent  dem- 
agogue, the  author  of  the  mutiny,  assumed  the  command  of  the 
colony,  which  began  rapidly  to  decline.  Insubordination  and 
want  succeeded ;  the  friendship  and  supplies  of  the  natives 
were  withheld,  and  the  settlement  was  finally  abandoned. 
They  set  sail  for  France,  and  after  being  becalmed  at  sea  and 
reduced  to  the  point  of  starvation,  the  survivors,  picked  up  by 
an  English  vessel,  were  landed  on  the  coast  of  England,  des- 
titute and  helpless.  Thus  terminated  the  first  French  settle- 
ment in  Florida. 

[A.D.  1564.]  Soon  after  this  disastrous  issue,  Admiral  Co- 
ligny  projected  another  settlement,  and  obtained  permission  to 
send  three  ships  to  Florida,  with  a  new  colony  of  emigrants. 
This  colony,  which  contained  six  hundred  emigrants  and  sol- 
diers, among  whom  were  many  of  the  nobility  and  the  best 
blood  of  France,  was  placed  under  the  command  and  superin- 
tendence of  M.  Laudonnier,  who  was  also  an  experienced  mar- 
iner. This  colony  was  well  supplied  with  provisions,  arms, 
and  agricultural  implements.    Afler  a  long  and  disastrous  voy- 


68 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


age  in  the  month  of  June,  the  colony  arrived  at  Fort  Carolana : 
but  the  fort  was  abandoned.  Fearing  the  resentment  of  the 
natives,  Laudonnier  dechned  to  remain.  He  sailed  south,  and 
landed  in  the  **  River  of  May."  Six  leagues  above  the  mouth, 
upon  the  south  bank,  he  erected  a  fort,  and  called  it  also  "  Fort 
Carolana."  No  opportunity  was  lost,  and  no  kind  offices 
were  spared,  for  securing  the  good  will  and  friendship  of  the 
natives.* 

[A.D.  1565.]  An  enthusiastic  phrensy  was  the  vice  of  the 
age,  and  the  individuals  in  the  new  colony  were  by  no  means 
exempt  from  its  influence.  Many  were  blinded  with  the  pas- 
sion for  sudden  wealth,  which  still  lured  the  credulous  to  Flor- 
ida. Others  were  avaricious  and  dissolute,  despising  subordi- 
nation in  the  sands  and  swamps  of  a  savage  wilderness.  In- 
stead of  a  patient  and  frugal  industry,  with  judicious  tillage  of 
the  earth,  they  rambled  over  the  country  in  search  of  gold,  sil- 
ver, and  precious  stones.  In  this  search,  some  had  penetrated 
west  as  far  as  the  Mississippi  River.f 

At  length,  having  forfeited  the  confidence  and  hospitality  of 
the  natives,  they  were  reduced  to  want  and  suffering.  Dissen- 
sions sprang  up,  and,  while  one  half  were  in  danger  of  destruc- 
tion by  the  natives  and  by  famine,  another  portion,  including 
the  mariners,  formed  a  mutiny,  and  the  mutineers  engaged  in 
a  piratical  expedition  against  the  neighboring  settlements  of 
Spain,  while  others  were  preparing  to  abandon  the  settlement 
and  return  to  France. 

In  time  to  prevent  the  total  destruction  of  the  colony  and  the 
abandonment  of  Florida,  Ribault  arrived  with  a  large  supply 
of  provisions,  and  such  implements  as  were  requisite  for  a  new 
settlement.  He  assumed  the  command,  endeavored  to  restore 
harmony  and  order,  and  to  introduce  economy  and  industrious 
habits  among  the  colonists. 

But  the  jealousy  of  Spain  and  the  bigotry  of  Rome  were 
aroused  when  it  was  known  that  a  colony  of  heretics  was  estab- 
lished within  the  limits  of  Florida,  a  province  of  Spain,  and  a 
bishopric  of  Rome.  The  true  faith  had  been  almost  excluded 
bv  nature  and  the  natives ;  and  should  Calvinism  be  established 
there  by  a  rival  power  I  The  Spanish  court  determined  at 
once  to  exterminate  the  heresy  with  the  colony.    An  expedi- 


*  Williams's  Florida,  p.  170.    Also,  Martin's  Loaiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  81,  92. 
T  See  Williams's  Florida,  p.  171. 


A.D.  1565.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


69 


tion  was  accordingly  prepared  in  Spain,  under  Pedro  Melendez 
de  Aviles,  for  the  conquest  and  colonization  of  Florida.  In 
consideration  of  certain  extensive  grants  and  privileges,  with 
the  title  of  "  Adelantado  of  Florida,"  he  obligated  himself  to  in- 
vade Florida  with  at  least  five  hundred  men,  and  to  complete 
the  conquest  in  three  years ;  to  explore  the  coast,  harbors,  and 
rivers  ;  to  establish  a  colony  of  five  hundred  souls,  of  whom 
one  hundred  should  be  married  men  ;  to  introduce  twelve  ec- 
clesiastics and  four  Jesuits,  besides  domestic  animals  and  other 
supplies  for  a  colony. 

A  direful  destiny  awaited  the  French  Calvinists,  and  they  had, 
through  their  predecessors,  provoked  the  evil.  Melendez  was 
a  man  of  cruel  disposition,  and  accustomed  to  scenes  of  blood. 
The  King  of  Spain  was  resolved  to  protect  his  Catholic  sub- 
jects in  his  own  dominions.  The  cause  found  no  weak  aveng- 
er in  Melendez.  He  arrived  on  the  coast  on  the  twenty-eighth 
of  August,  1565,  and,  having  captured  or  dispersed  the  French 
cruisers  off  the  coast,  he  landed  near  the  present  site  of  St.  Au- 
gustine. Here,  having  ascertained  the  strength  and  position 
of  the  French  colony  on  the  south  side  of  the  St.  Mary's  River, 
a  few  miles  from  the  coast,  he  deemed  it  his  first  duty  to  de- 
stroy the  intruding  heretics.  After  a  rapid  and  secret  march 
through  the  intervening  woods  and  swamps,  the  colony  was 
taken  by  surprise.  The  attack  was  made  on  the  twenty-first 
of  September,  and,  after  a  spirited  resistance  by  the  garrison, 
the  fort  was  carried  by  storm,  and  the  garrison  put  to  the  sword. 
During  several  days  afterward  the  settlements  were  ravaged, 
and  men,  women,  and  children  were  put  to  death  indiscrimi- 
nately. The  principal  massacre  occurred  on  St.  Matthew's 
day,  and  the  Spaniards  commemorated  it  by  naming  the  river 
St.  Matheo.* 

The  whole  number  of  French  who  fell  in  this  carnage  was 
about  nine  hundred.  Many  of  the  bodies  were  suspended  from 
trees  with  this  inscription,  "  Not  as  Frenchmen,  but  as  heretics  /" 

After  the  destruction  of  the  colony,  Melendez  returned  to  the 
present  site  of  St.  Augustine,  where  he  built  a  town  upon  an 
inlet,  to  both  of  which  he  gave  the  name  of  St.  Augustine.    He 

*  The  River  St  Maiy,  the  present  northeastern  boundary  of  East  Florida,  was  donbt- 
less  the  seat  of  the  French  settlements  of  this  early  period,  and  is  the  proper  "  River 
of  May"  of  the  French,  and  "  St.  Matheo"  of  the  Spaniards.  The  settlements  were 
chiefly  on  the  south  side,  within  ten  miles  of  the  river.  Some  have  confounded  the  Riv- 
er of  May  with  the  St.  John's.    See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  19-33. 


M 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


also  built  a  fort  for  the  protection  of  his  colony.  Another  fort 
was  erected,  and  a  colony  planted  upon  the  ruins  of  the  late 
French  colony,  on  the  River  of  May.  St.  Augustine  is,  there- 
fore, the  oldest  town  in  the  United  States,  having  been  built 
fifty  years  before  any  other  town  now  remaining. 

[A.D.  1569.]  To  retaliate  this  outrage  of  the  Spaniards,  a 
strong  expedition  was  prepared  by  Dominic  de  Gourges,  a 
Catholic,  a  man  of  wealth,  who  had  seen  much  service  in  the 
wars  with  Spain,  and  had  no  love  for  Spaniards,  having  once 
been  their  prisoner,  and  by  them  consigned  to  the  galleys.  He 
was  a  suitable  person  to  revenge  the  outrage  upon  his  coun- 
trymen. He  equipped,  at  his  own  expense,  a  military  expedi- 
tion, enlisted  men  for  a  twelve  months'  cruise,  and  set  sail  for 
Florida,  alleging  Africa  to  be  the  object  of  his  enterprise. 
His  real  purpose  was  kept  a  profound  secret  until  he  reached 
the  coast  of  Florida ;  then,  in  an  animated  and  thrilling  speech, 
he  disclosed  to  his  men  the  object  of  his  voyage,  and  infused 
into  them  the  deep  revenge  he  entertained  against  the  disgrace- 
ful conduct  of  the  Spaniards  three  years  before.  Filled  with 
his  spirit,  they  desired  to  be  led  to  the  revenge  of  their  slaugh- 
tered countrymen.  Unsuspected  by  the  Spaniards,  he  ascend- 
ed the  River  St.  Mary's  for  many  miles  into  the  interior,  ob- 
serving the  settlements  and  forts  as  he  advanced.  Three  forts 
protected  the  settlements ;  two  had  been  mounted  with  the 
cannon  taken  from  the  French  forts,  and  the  entire  garrison 
consisted  of  four  hundred  men. 

At  length,  having  secured  the  aid  of  a  numerous  body  of  In- 
dians, he  descended  the  river,  attacked  the  forts  by  surprise, 
and  carried  them  all  by  storm.  The  garrisons  were  put  to  the 
sword,  besides  many  of  the  settlers  who  could  not  escape  his 
fury.* 

Having  demolished  the  forts,  burned  the  houses,  and  ravaged 
the  settlements  with  fire  and  sword  on  both  sides  of  the  River 
St.  Mary,  and  being  sensible  of  his  inability,  with  his  small 
force,  to  retain  the  country  permanently,  he  retired  to  the  coast 
and  set  sail  for  France. 

In  imitation  of  his  Spanish  rival,  he  had  suspended  the  bod- 
ies of  some  of  his  victims  on  trees,  with  this  inscription,  "  Not 
as  Spaniards,  but  as  murderers."  The  act  was  disavowed  by 
the  government  of  France,  which  laid  no  claim  to  the  conquest 

*  WilUama'a  Florida,  p.  174.    Martin's  Looiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  34, 95. 


A.D.  1585.] 


VAM.EY    or   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


n 


of  De  Gourges,  nor  to  the  country  occupied  by  the  French  ref- 


ugees. 


[A.D.  1580.]  Melendez  heard  of  the  destruction  of  his  gar- 
risons with  extreme  indignation  ;  but  the  enemy  had  fled.  He 
continued  to  govern  the  province  for  ten  years,  strengthened 
his  position  at  St.  Augustine,  and  used  every  effort  to  restore 
the  colony  to  comfort  and  safety.  He  was  also  indefatigable 
in  his  exertions  to  conciliate  the  natives,  and  to  reduce  them 
to  the  Catholic  faith.  At  his  request,  missionaries  of  every  or- 
der were  S3nt  from  Spain,  but  chiefly  Franciscans.  These  men 
visited  the  remotest  tribes,  and,  by  their  address,  the  mildness 
of  their  manners,  and  the  simplicity  of  their  lives,  devoted  to 
teaching  the  arts  of  civilization,  obtained  the  entire  ascendency 
over  the  savages.  The  Catholic  religion,  in  1584,  was  ac- 
knowledged by  most  of  the  tribes  north  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
and  east  of  the  Mississippi. 

[A.D.  1584.]  This  year  many  missions  were  established,  and 
convents  were  founded  in  Middle  Florida,  and  as  far  westward 
as  the  Mississippi.  The  ruins  of  many  of  those  in  Middle  Flor- 
ida now  excite  the  investigation  of  the  curious.  Here  was  a 
great  religious  province  chartered  by  the  See  of  Rome  under 
the  Franciscan  order,  and  known  by  the  name  of"  St.  Helena," 
whose  representative  government  was  fixed  at  St.  Augustine.* 

[A.D.  1585.]  English  arrogance  and  love  of  dominion  view- 
ed with  jealousy  the  peaceful  settlements  of  Spain  which  were 
springing  up  in  Florida.  Sir  Francis  Drake,  on  the  8th  of 
May,  1585,  with  a  large  fleet,  after  ravaging  and  plundering 
the  Spanish  colonies  in  the  West  Indies,  and  at  Carthagena,  in 
the  true  spirit  of  a  pirate,  sailed  for  the  feeble  settlements  upon 
the  St.  John's,  in  Florida.  He  attacked  the  forts  at  St.  Augus- 
tine, which  were  abandoned  to  his  superior  force  after  a  feeble 
resistance.  The  terrified  people  of  the  settlements  fled  to  the 
woods  for  safety ;  and  the  English  buccaneer,  after  ravaging 
the  country,  plundered  Fort  St.  John  of  fourteen  pieces  of  brass 
cannon,  and  the  military  chest,  containing  two  thousand  pounds 
sterling  in  money.f 

Still  the  limits  of  Florida  on  the  north  were  vague  and  un- 
defined. Spain  claimed  all  the  coast  northward  indefinitely. 
St.  Augustine  is  in  latitude  29°  50'  north  ;  but  from  the  found- 
ing of  this  ancient  town,  the  Spaniards  made  but  little  effort  to 

*  WiUiama'i  Florida,  p.  175.  t  Idem,  p.  176. 


78 


11I0TUKY    OK    TUB 


[book  I. 


extend  their  settlements  north  of  the  St.  Mary's  River,  which 
is  in  latitude  30°  45'  north.  The  first  English  settlement  in 
Florida  was  attempted,  unsuccessfully,  in  1585,  by  Sir  Hum- 
phrey Gilbert  upon  the  Roanoke  River,  within  the  present  lim- 
its of  North  Carolina.  The  second,  equally  unfortunate,  was 
made  by  Sir  Walter  Rnleigh,  in  1608,  upon  James's  River, 
within  the  present  limits  of  Virginia.  About  the  same  time 
the  first  French  settlements  were  attempted  in  Acadie,  on  the 
Bay  of  Fundy,  at  Port  Royal,  and  upon  the  St.  Lawrence  be- 
low Montreal. 

[A.D.  1651.]  The  English  colony  on  James's  River  struggled 
against  disasters  and  misfortunes  for  nearly  twenty  years ; 
and  in  1626,  out  of  nine  thousand  emigrants  sent  from  Eng- 
land, only  eighteen  hundred  remained  alive  in  the  colony. 
Such  was  the  first  English  colony,  which  began  to  encroach 
upon  the  undefined  limits  of  Spanish  Florida.  In  the  next 
quarter  of  a  century  the  population  of  the  colony,  supplied  and 
sustained  by  religious  and  political  persecution  in  the  mother 
country,  had  augmented  its  numbers  to  more  than  twenty 
thousand  souls,  comprised  within  the  royal  province  of  Vir- 
ginia, claiming  the  latitude  of  36°  as  its  southern  boundary. 

Spain,  unable  to  oppose  more  than  a  feeble  resistance  to 
the  encroachment  of  her  powerful  rival,  acceded  to  the  de- 
mands of  England,  and  relinquished  all  claim  to  lands  north 
of  latitude  36°  30',  the  present  southern  boundary  of  Virginia. 

Such  was  the  first  definite  limit  claimed  by  Spain  as  the 
northern  boundary  of  Florida  against  the  pretensions  of  rival 
powers.  Yet  the  spirit  for  colonizing  America  having  spread 
to  England,  she  sought  to  establish  other  colonies  upon  the  un- 
appropriated coast  of  Florida,  south  of  Virginia,  as  well  as 
upon  the  coast  north  of  the  Chesapeake  Bay.  Disregarding 
any  claim  of  Spain  to  the  country  north  of  her  actual  settle- 
ments, the  English  monarchs,  after  having  established  numer- 
ous colonies  upon  the  coast  north  of  Long  Island  Sound,  re- 
solved to  occupy  the  unappropriated  regions  north  of  the  Span- 
ish settlements  upon  the  River  St.  Matheo ;  nor  was  it  long 
before  the  resolution  was  carried  into  effect. 

[A.D.  1663.]  The  next  English  encroachment  upon  the 
limits  of  Florida  was  by  Charles  the  Second,  who  granted  to 
Lord  Clarendon  and  others  the  absolute  right  and  property  in 
all  lands  from  the  thirty-sixth  parallel  of  north  latitude  south- 


A.D.  1085.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MIHSiaSIPIM. 


78 


ward  to  tlio  River  St.  Matheo,  by  which  he  intended  the  pres- 
ent St.  Mary's  River,  in  Uititude  30°  45'.  A  short  time  after- 
ward the  king  extended  the  hniits  of  their  grant  on  the  south 
to  the  parallel  of  29°,  of  course  embracing  the  coast  for 
nearly  fifty  miles  south  of  St.  Augustine.  This  grant,  like 
many  of  the  early  English  grants,  with  an  utter  ignorance  of 
the  interior,  extended,  according  to  the  royal  charter,  west- 
ward to  the  "  South  Sea,"  or  the  Pacific  Ocean.*  Such  was 
the  ignorance  of  Europe  as  to  the  actual  extent  of  North  Amer- 
ica as  late  as  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

This  grant,  so  far  as  it  conferred  any  right,  embraced  all 
the  immense  territory  north  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  would 
have  restricted  Spain  to  the  southern  half  of  the  peninsula  of 
East  Florida.  The  proprietors,  however,  for  more  than  half  a 
century,  were  unable  to  extend  their  settlements  further  south 
than  the  parallel  of  32°,  or  to  the  north  bank  of  the  Savannah 
River ;  and  Spain  continued  to  claim  the  unappropriated 
country. 

[A.D.  1665.]  In  the  year  1665,  Captain  Davis,  an  English 
buccaneer,  sailed  from  the  West  Indies,  and  attacked  the  Span- 
ish settlement  at  St.  Augustine.  Meeting  with  no  opposition, 
although  the  town  was  defended  by  an  octagonal  fort  and  two 
round  towers,  garrisoned  by  regular  troops,  he  plundered  the 
town,  and  retired  with  his  booty.f  No  English  settlement 
had  then  been  made  south  of  St.  Helena  Sound. 

[A.D.  1679.]  Fourteen  years  afterward,  an  English  colony 
settled  on  Ashley  River,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  a  colonial 
capital,  which  was  called  "Charlestown,"  and  the  province  was 
called  Carolina,  in  honor  of  Charles  II.  of  England,  thus  per- 
petuating the  name  of  Fort  Carolana,  which  had  been  named 
in  honor  of  Charles  IX.  of  France,  one  hundred  years  before. 

[A.D.  1685.]  The  English  colony  of  Carolina  did  not  in- 
crease in  population  as  was  desired.  In  order  to  colonize  the 
country  more  rapidly,  the  English  crown  permitted  and  en- 
couraged the  emigration  of  the  French  Calvinists,  or  "  Hugue- 
nots," who  were  compelled  to  seek  refuge  out  of  France  from 
the  intolerance  of  Catholic  persecution.  The  first  emigration 
of  these  unfortunate  people  took  place  in  the  year  1685,  when 
four  hundred  families  arrived,  consequent  upon  the  revocation 


*  See  Marshall's  Life  of  Washiii^'toii,  vol.  i.,  p.  180, 181,  first  edition, 
t  See  Williams's  Florida,  p.  176. 


n 


lilelTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


of  the  "  Edict  of  Nnntz."  ('nrolina  subsequently  received  sev- 
eral other  arrivals  of  these  refugees  from  religious  persecution, 
whose  numbers  served  greatly  to  augment  the  population  of 
the  new  English  colony.  The  exiles  from  Catholic  France 
were  thus  received  under  the  protection  of  England,  which 
had  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Reformers.  Other  colonies  of 
French  Calvinists  arrived  repeatedly  in  the  next  twenty  years. 
Incorporated  under  English  laws,  with  English  subjects,  they 
gave  origin  to  some  of  the  most  intelligent,  wealthy,  and  influ- 
ential families  which  now  adorn  the  State  of  South  Carolina. 

The  Spaniards  in  vain  remonstrated  against  encroachments 
upon  their  territory  south  of  latitude  30°  30'.  The  British  court 
refused  to  acknowledge  their  claim,  and  for  years  disregarded 
their  remonstrances. 

[A.D.  1090.]  At  length,  to  favor  a  peaceable  adjustment 
of  boundaries,  Spain  further  relinquished  all  the  territory  north 
of  latitude  33°,  claiming  only  as  far  north  as  Cape  Romain,  or 
one  degree  north  of  the  most  southern  settlements  of  the  Eng- 
lish.* Finally,  exasperated  at  the  persevering  encroachments 
of  their  rival  colony,  and  their  intrigues  with  the  native  sava- 
ges, the  Spaniards  resolved  to  imitate  their  example  by  exci- 
ting against  the  English  settlements  the  hostility  of  the  Indian 
tribes.  Accordingly,  until  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  centu- 
ry, mutual  acts  of  partisan  hostility  and  piratical  war,  aided 
by  the  Indian  allies  respectively,  spread  terror  and  desolation 
through  the  frontiers  of  the  rival  colonies.  These  expeditions 
were  conducted  by  the  English  against  the  Spanish  settle- 
ments on  the  St.  Mary's  and  St.  John's  Rivers  with  great  fury 
and  destruction,  and  these  beautiful  regions  again  became  a 
scene  of  blood  and  rapine. 

[A.D.  1702.]  At  length,  war  having  been  declared  between 
Spain  and  Great  Britain,  Governor  Moore  of  Carolina,  "thirst- 
ing for  Spanish  plunder,"  with  an  army  of  1200  volunteers  and 
Creek  Indians,  ravaged  the  whole  settlements  from  the  St.  Mary 
to  the  St.  John  Rivers,  and  plundered  St.  Augustine  itself. 

[A.D.  1704.]  Two  years  afterward,  the  same  Governor 
Moore  raised  a  force  of  one  thousand  Creek  Indians  and  a  few 
desperate  white  men,  with  whom  he  ravaged  the  Spanish  set- 
tlements from  Flint  River  to  the  Oklockony,  and  westward 
to  the  Appalachicola.    A  scene  of  general  devastation  mark- 

*  See  Marahall'fl  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  i.,  Introduction. 


A.D.  1704.] 


VAI.LRY   OF   THE  MISHIHSIPPI. 


75 


ed  his  route.  The  fort  on  the  Oklockony,  twenty  miles  from 
the  sea,  M'as  captured  with  great  shiughter.  In  the  strife,  the 
Governor  of  Appalachy,  Don  Juan  Mexia,  and  the  greater  por- 
tion of  the  garrison,  amounting  to  nearly  four  hundred  men, 
^ere  slain ;  the  fort  was  burned  to  ashes ;  monasteries,  con- 
vents, and  missionary  establishments  alike  sunk  under  the 
flames.  Such  of  the  inhabitants  as  escaped  the  tomahawk  and 
seal  ping-knife  were  driven  into  a  wretched  captivity.  Four- 
teen hundred  Yamasses,  who  had  been  on  friendly  terms  with 
the  Spaniards,  were  driven  into  Georgia,  and  many  of  them 
were  reduced  to  slavery.*  Such  have  been  the  tender  mer- 
cies of  the  English  in  all  their  conquests. 

Meantime,  Spain  encountered  another  restriction  upon  the 
limits  of  Florida  on  the  west.  The  French  colonists  from  Can- 
ada on  the  extreme  north  had  penetrated  beyond  the  great 
lakes,  and  had  explored  the  Mississippi  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico; 
a  colony  had  been  landed  west  of  the  Colorado,  and  the  gov- 
ernment of  France  had  been  actively  engaged  more  than  five 
years  in  establishing  a  permanent  colony  upon  the  Mississippi 
and  upon  the  coast,  more  than  fifty  miles  east  of  the  great  river. 

Up  to  this  time  Spain  had  no  rival  in  the  west ;  and,  fearing 
no  opposition  in  that  quarter,  she  had  neglected  to  plant  colo- 
nies west  of  the  district  of  Appalachy.  The  whole  coast,  around** 
the  northern  side  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  from  Tampico  east- 
ward to  the  Appalachicola  River,  nominally  attached  to  the 
viceroyalty  of  Mexico,  was  in  the  sole  occupancy  of  the  Indian 
tribes,  without  a  single  Spanish  settlement,  except  that  of  Pen- 
sacola,  which  had  been  established  first  in  1696,  after  the  French 
had  advanced  upon  the  Mississippi. 

The  Spanish  government,  perceiving  the  advance  of  the 
French,  had,  in  1696,  sent  a  colony  of  three  hundred  emigrants 
from  Mexico  to  occupy  the  point ;  which  subsequently,  in  1699, 
was  re-enforced,  and  placed  in  command  of  Don  Andre  deRiola, 
who  proceeded  to  fortify  the  harbor  and  enlarge  the  settlement. 

Meantime,  after  the  arrangement  of  boundaries  between  the 
English  and  Spanish  settlements  on  the  Atlantic  sea-board,  a 
continual  system  of  partisan  and  piratical  warfare  was  main- 
tained by  the  rival  colonies,  each  instigating  the  numerous  war- 
like savages  in  their  vicinity  to  espouse  their  causes  respect- 
ively.   Hence,  for  nearly  twenty  years,  these  settlements,  about 

•  Williams's  Florida,  p.  179. 


70 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  I. 


three  hundred  miles  asunder,  were  repeatedly  ravaged  by  sword 
and  fire. 

At  length  the  people  of  Carolina,  dissatisfied  with  the  pro* 
prieta.y  government,  and  being  again  threatened  with  a  for- 
midable invasion  from  Havana,  renounced  all  subjection  to  th^ 
proprietary  government,  and  cast  themselves  upon  the  protec- 
tion of  the  crown  of  Great  Britain.  Carolina  was  soon  after 
annexed  as  the  royal  province  of  Caroluia,  extending  from  the 
Roanoke  to  the  Savannah. 

[A.D.  1732.]  In  the  year  1732,  for  the  convenience  of  the 
colonists,  the  province  was  divided  into  two  governments,  called 
North  and  South  Carolina.*  About  this  time,  a  new  colony 
was  projected  in  England  for  the  settlement  of  the  country 
south  of  the  Savannah,  as  far  as  the  Altamaha  River.  This 
region  was  to  be  called  the  province  of  "  Georgia,"  in  honor  of 
George  the  Second.  It  was  to  be  peopled  chiefly  by  indigent 
but  industrious  families ;  and  in  the  following  year  the  town 
of  Savannah  was  begun,  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  first  emi- 
grants, under  the  superintendence  of  General  James  Oglethorpe. 
The  introduction  of  slaves  was  prohibited,  in  order  to  remove 
competition  and  to  encourage  free  white  labor. 

[A.D.  1739.]  The  Spaniards  persisted  in  their  opposition  to 
the  English  encroachments  in  Florida,  and  reciprocal  partisan 
warfare  again  broke  out  between  ♦he  rival  colonies  and  their 
Indian  allies. 

Before  the  close  of  the  year  1739,  England  and  Spain  were 
again  involved  in  a  general  war,  which  extended  to  their  Amer- 
ican colonies  in  Florida.  The  following  year  an  expedition 
under  General  Oglethorpe  sailed  from  Georgia  and  South  Car- 
olina, for  the  invasion  of  the  Spanish  settlements  near  St.  Au- 
gustine, in  Florida.  After  partial  success,  the  ultimate  object 
of  the  expedition,  the  capture  of  St.  Augustine,  failed. 

[A.D.  1742.]  In  1742  a  strong  Spanish  expedition,  consist- 
ing of  thirty-two  sail,  and  conveying  three  thousand  troops,  in- 
vaded Georgia ;  and  after  producing  great  consternation  and 
considerable  ravages,  they  advanced  up  the  Altamaha  River, 
landed  upon  the  island,  and  there  erected  fortifications,  threat- 
ening the  subjugation  of  the  Carolinas  and  Virginia.  But  at 
the  close  of  the  war  Georgia  was  still  considered  as  extending 
southward  to  the  River  St.  Mary. 

*  See  Marahall'i  Life  of  Wuhington,  vol  i.,  p.  308. 


A.D.  1764.] 


VAIiLET  OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


77 


Meantime,  on  the  west,  as  early  as  1721,  the  Perdido  River 
and  Bay  had  been  established  as  the  eastern  boundary  of  lower 
Louisiana;  thus  restricting  the  western  limit  of  Florida  to 
the  same  boundary  which  it  now  possesses  as  an  independent 
state. 

[A.D.  1763.]  Such  were  the  boundaries  and  sovereignty  of 
Florida  until  the  year  1763,  when  it  iA\  under  the  dominion  of 
the  British  crown,  after  the  dismemberment  of  Louisiana.  At 
the  close  of  a  protracted  war.  Great  Britain,  at  the  treaty  of 
peace,  became  possessed  of  the  whole  of  New  France,  and  all 
that  portion  of  the  province  of  Louisiana  lying  upon  the  east 
side  of  the  Mississippi,  except  the  Island  of  New  Orleans.  At 
the  same  time,  Spain,  for  valuable  considerations,  relinquished 
the  province  of  Florida  to  the  same  power.  Thus  the  do- 
minion of  Great  Britain  was  extended  over  the  whole  territory 
east  of  the  Mississippi,  from  its  sources  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
excepting  only  the  Island  of  New  Orleans. 

[A.D.  1764.]  The  following  year  the  British  cabinet  ex- 
tended the  limits  of  Florida  on  the  west,  by  annexing  to  it  all 
that  part  of  Louisiana  ceded  by  France  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  south  of  the  Yazoo  River.  Thus  Florida,  un- 
der the  English  dominion,  was  again  extended  from  the  At- 
lantic Ocean  to  the  Mississippi  River.  The  province  was  also 
then  first  divided  into  two  portions,  called  East  and  West 
Florida.  West  Florida,  agreeably  to  the  king's  proclamation, 
was  bounded  on  the  north  by  a  line  drawn  due  east  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Yazoo  to  the  Chattahoochy  River  ;  the  latter  of 
which  was  made  the  boundary  between  East  and  West  Florida. 
Each  of  these  divisions  was  erected  into  a  separate  govern- 
ment, under  different  governors.  Pensacola  was  the  capital 
of  West  Florida,  and  St.  Augustine  of  East  Florida.  This  di- 
vision, and  these  boundaries,  remained  unchanged  for  fifteen 
years,  until  West  Florida  was  wrested  from  the  British  crown, 
in  the  years  1779  and  1781,  by  the  victorious  arms  of  Spain, 
under  Don  Galvez,  from  Louisiana. 

English  emigrants  began  to  arrive  in  Florida ;  and  several 
of  the  English  nobility  settled  plantations  on  Hillsboro'  River, 
on  St.  John's  River,  and  on  Amelia  Island,  in  the  peninsula 
of  East  Florida.  Settlements  were  also  made  at  Pensacola. 
Lord  RoUe  obtained  a  grant  of  land  on  St.  John's  River,  to 
which  he  transported  nearly  three  hundred  miserable  females, 


78 


BISTORT   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


\(rho  were  picked  up  in  the  purlieus  of  London.  He  hoped  to 
reform  them,  and  make  them  good  members  of  society  in  his 
new  colony  of"  Charlotia ;"  but  death,  in  a  few  years,  removed 
them  from  his  charge.* 

[A.D.  1767.]  Doctor  TurnbuU,  of  notorious  memory,  and 
Sir  William  Duncan,  tried  a  different  experiment  for  peopling 
Florida.  The  former  sailed  for  the  Peloponnesus,  and  for  the 
sum  of  four  hundred  pounds  sterling,  obtained  permission  of 
the  Governor  of  Modon  to  convey  to  Florida  a  large  number  of 
Greek  families.  In  1767,  he  arrived  with  one  small  vessel,  and 
took  as  many  Greeks  as  he  could  obtain.  On  his  way  from 
Modon,  he  put  in  at  the  islands  of  Corsica  and  Minorca,  and 
there  procured  several  vessels,  and  augmented  the  number  of 
his  settlers  to  fifteen  hundred.  He  agreed  to  carry  them  free 
of  expense,  to  furnish  them  with  good  provisions  and  clothing, 
and,  at  the  end  of  three  years,  to  give  to  each  head  of  a  family 
fifty  acres,  and  to  each  child  twenty-five  acres  of  Jand.  If 
they  should  be  dissatisfied  at  the  end  of  six  months,  he  agreed 
to  send  them  back  to  their  native  country.  These  were  the 
terms  promised,  but  never  complied  with. 

They  had  a  long  and  tedious  voyage  of  four  months,  and 
many  of  the  old  people  died  on  the  voyage.  Twenty-nine  died 
in  one  vessel.  They  arrived  in  Florida  in  the  fall  season,  and 
a  grant  of  sixty  thousand  acres  of  land  for  the  settlement  was 
made  by  the  Governor  of  Florida.  To  shelter  them  through 
the  winter,  they  built  huts  of  palmetto,  and  proceeded  to  pre- 
pare the  fields  for  the  opening  spring.  The  settlement  was 
designated  "  New  Smyrna,"  and  its  location  was  about  four 
miles  west  of  Musqueto  Inlet,  and  seventy-four  miles  south  of 
St.  Augustine. 

After  a  sufficient  quantity  of  provisions  had  been  raised^ 
Turnbull  directed  his  attention  to  the  cultivation  and  manu- 
facture of  indigo,  and  reduced  his  ignorant  and  helpless  foreign- 
ers to  the  most  abject  and  disgraceful  slavery.  In  five  years 
they  had  nearly  three  thousand  acres  of  good  land  in  a  fine 
state  of  cultivation ;  and  the  nett  value  of  the  indigo  crop,  for 
one  year,  amounted  to  three  thousand  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-four dollars. 

[A.D.  1770.]  Turnbull's  avarice  seemed  to  increase  with 
his  prosperity ;  but  he  failed  to  comply  with  his  agreements,  or 

*  WiUianu's  Florida,  p.  188. 


#' 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY  OF   THE   MI88ISSIPPI. 


70 


pre- 

was 

four 

th  of 


to  fulfill  his  contracts.  From  the  colonists  he  selected  a  few 
Italians,  whom  he  made  overseers  and  drivers  ;  and  they  ex- 
ercised over  the  remainder  such  cruelty  and  oppression  as  is 
known  only  under  English  masters.  Men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, indiscriminately,  were  subjected  to  the  lash,  and  to  the 
most  inhuman  treatment  and  privations.* 

Tasks  were  assigned  them  for  the  week  as  large  as  they 
could  possibly  perform.  The  food  allowed  the  laborers  was 
seven  quarts  of  shelled  corn  per  week  for  the  whites ;  to  the 
negroes  on  the  plantations  ten  quarts  per  week  were  allowed. 
Saturday  and  Sunday  were  allowed  to  supply  themselves  with 
meat  by  fishing  and  hunting.  The  sick  and  invalids  were  al- 
lowed only  three  and  a  half  quarts  of  corn  per  week. 

Most  of  the  Minorcans  and  Corsicans  had  brought  a  good 
supply  of  clothing  with  them ;  when  these  were  worn  out,  they 
were  furnished  with  one  suit  of  Osnaburgs  each  year.  One 
blanket  and  one  pair  of  shoes,  for  the  whole  term,  were  given 
to  the  men ;  but  none  were  allowed  to  the  women,  although 
many  of  them  had  been  accustomed  to  live  in  comparatively 
easy  circumstances  in  their  own  country. 

[A.D.  1774.]  For  nine  years  were  this  people  kept  in  ig- 
nominious bondage,  ground  down  by  a  tyranny  unequalled  by 
the  relentless  Spaniards  of  St.  Domingo.  During  the  last  three 
years  they  were  supplied  with  no  clothing  at  all,  but  were  per- 
mitted to  buy  on  credit  at  a  public  store  belonging  to  the  com- 
pany, thus  creating  a  debt  which  served  as  a  pretext  for  their 
detention.  On  the  most  trifling  occasions,  they  were  beaten 
without  mercy ;  and  negroes  were  usually  chosen  as  the  in- 
struments of  diabolical  cruelty,  they  being  often  compelled  to 
beat  and  lacerate  those  who  failed  to  perform  their  tasks, 
until  many  of  them  died.  Sometimes,  after  having  the  skin 
scourged  from  their  backs,  they  were  left  tied  to  trees  all  night, 
naked  and  exposed,  for  swarms  of  musquetoes  to  fatten  on  their 
blood  and  to  aggravate  their  tortures.  If  induced  by  despair 
to  run  away,  they  were  captured  by  the  negroes  of  the  neigh- 
boring plantations,  who  received  a  bounty  for  their  apprehen- 
sion and  delivery.  Some  wandered  oflfand  sought  an  asylum 
in  the  woods,  where  they  died  of  hunger  and  disease,  or  sought 
the  protection  of  the  Indians. 

[A.D.  177G.]  At  the  end  of  nine  years, their  number,  including 

*  Williams's  Florida,  p.  166,  189. 


80 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


the  natural  increase,  was  reduced  to  six  hundred.  These  \nmp\e, 
living  under  the  protection  of  a  nation  which  boasts  its  freedom, 
and  that  its  very  soil  strips  the  shackles  from  the  slave,  were,  by  a 
mere  accident,  released  from  their  cruel  tyrant.  Secluded,  over- 
tasked, and  isolated,  they  knew  not  their  rights,  nor  the  means 
of  obtaining  them.  In  the  summer  of  1776,  some  English  gen- 
tlemen from  St.  Augustine,  making  an  excursion  down  the 
coast,  called  at  "  New  Smyrna"  to  see  the  improvements,  espe- 
cially a  spacious  stone  mansion-house  which  had  been  com- 
menced for  the  proprietor.  Seeing  the  wretched  and  degraded 
condition  of  these  people,  one  of  the  gentlemen  observed,  in  the 
hearing  of  an  intelligent  boy,  "  that  if  these  people  knew  their 
rights,"  they  would  not  submit  to  such  slavery.  The  boy  re- 
peated the  remark  to  his  mother,  and  she  took  counsel  with  her 
friends  at  night,  to  gain  more  intelligence  on  the  subject.* 

A  plan  was  devised  to  send  three  individuals  ostensibly  to 
the  coast  to  obtain  a  supply  of  turtle,  but,  in  fact,  to  St.  Augus- 
tine. They  arrived  in  safety,  and  soon  had  an  interview  with 
Mr.  Younge,  the  attorney-general  of  the  province.  They  made 
known  their  business,  and  he  promised  them  the  protection 
guarantied  to  them  by  the  laws.  Governor  Grant,  who  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  personally  connected  with  Turnbull  in  the 
slavery  of  these  Greeks  and  Minorcans,  had  been  superseded 
by  Governor  Tonyn,  who  sought  to  render  himself  popular  by 
causing  justice  to  be  done  to  these  long-injured  people. 

The  messengers  returned,  after  a  few  days,  with  the  joyful 
intelligence  that  justice  was  in  prospect ;  but  the  mission  must 
be  concealed,  as  well  as  the  intelligence  received.  Although 
Turnbull  was  absent,  they  feared  the  overseers,  and  dreaded 
their  cruelty.  They  met  in  secret,  and  chose  M.  Pallacier  for 
their  leader,  and  secretly  arranged  the  plan  of  their  departure. 
Upon  a  given  day,  formed  into  a  phalanx,  the  armed  and  strong 
men  guarding  the  women  and  children,  they  marched  in  a  body 
toward  St.  Augustine.  So  secretly  had  the  whole  plan  been 
concerted,  that  they  were  some  miles  on  their  way  before  the 
overseers  discovered  that  the  settlement  was  deserted. 

Turnbull,  their  tyrannical  master,  having  been  informed  of 
their  departure,  rode  many  miles  after  them,  and  overtook  them 
before  they  reached  St.  Augustine ;  but  his  entreaties  were 
unavailing  to  induce  them  to  return.    At  St.  Augustine  they 

*  WiUiamn's  Florida,  p.  188. 


A.D.  1783.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISHISSIPPI. 


81 


were  supplied  with  provisions  by  the  order  of  the  governor ; 
their  case  was  tried  before  the  judges,  and  their  cause  honest- 
ly advocated  by  the  attorney-general.  Turnbull  could  show 
no  cause  for  their  detention,  and  they  were  set  at  liberty  ;* 
but  they  had  no  redress  for  the  wrongs  which  they  had  already 
endured  upon  British  soil  and  under  British  jurisdiction. 

To  supply  them  with  homes,  they  were  offered  lands  for  set- 
tlement near  New  Smyrna ;  but,  fearing  some  treachery  in 
Turnbull,  they  refused  to  return  to  that  place.  Grounds  were, 
therefore,  assigned  them  in  the  northern  suburbs  of  St.  Augus- 
tine, where  they  erected  their  houses,  and  cultivated  gardens 
for  the  town  supplies.  The  same  grounds  to  this  day  are  oc- 
cupied by  many  of  their  descendants,  who  now  constitute  a  re- 
spectable, and  in  some  instances  a  wealthy  and  intelligent  por- 
tion of  the  population  of  that  city.f 

[A.D.  1778.]  During  the  occupancy  of  Florida  by  the  Eng- 
lish, under  the  fostering  care  of  the  government,  agriculture 
made  rapid  progress.  Sugar  and  rum  became  the  staple  prod- 
ucts ;  sugar-cane  was  cultivated  extensively  both  in  East  and 
in  West  Florida.  The  remains  of  the  iron  machinery  and  su- 
gar furnaces  may  be  seen  to  this  day  upon  the  old,  deserted 
plantations.  Indigo,  protected  by  a  bounty,  was  also  a  staple 
product  of  Florida.  J    Such  was  Florida  under  British  dominion. 

[A.D.  1783.]  By  the  treaty  of  1783,  Great  Britain  acknowl- 
edged the  independence  of  the  United  States  with  the  Missis- 
sippi for  their  boundary  on  the  west,  and  Florida  on  the  south. 
But  Florida  had  been  retroceded  to  his  Catholic  majesty  with- 
out defining  its  limits  on  the  north ;  and  Spain,  having  acquired 
West  Florida  by  conquest  before  the  cession,  claimed  the 
northern  boundary  as  it*  existed  under  the  British  authorities  in 
1779,  that  is,  bounded  by  a  line  to  be  drawn  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Yazoo,  due  east  to  the  Chattahoochy.  His  Catholic  maj- 
esty could  not  concede  to  Great  Britain  the  right  to  restrict  the 
limits  of  a  province  already  conquered,  and  the  right  of  pos- 
session to  which  was  recognized  by  the  consideration  stipula- 
ted in  the  treaty.  He  contended  that  the  treaty,  which  fixed 
the  southern  limits  of  the  United  States  at  the  31st  parallel 
of  latitude,  virtually  ceded  to  them  territory  rightfully  belong- 
ing to  Spain,  and  was  consequently  to  that  extent  null  and  void. 
It  was  upon  this  ground  that  his  Catholic  majesty  continued  to 


•  Williams's  Florida,  p.  189, 190. 

Vol.  I.— F 


t  Idem,  p.  190. 


t  Idem,  p.  191. 


80 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[OOOK  I. 


occupy  and  hold  possession  of  the  '♦  Natchez  district"  for  fifteen 
years  after  the  treaty  of  1783.  But  the  United  States  persisted 
in  their  right  to  the  limits  specified  in  the  treaty  ;  and  after  ten 
years  of  fruitless  negotiation,  and  a  contemplated  appeal  to  arms, 
when  Spain  was  again  at  war  with  Great  Britain,  his  Catholic 
majesty  reluctantly  consented  to  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  signed 
on  the  20th  day  of  October,  1795. 

[A.D.  1795.]  By  this  treaty  the  King  of  Spain,  recognizing 
the  claim  of  the  United  States  to  the  31st  parallel  of  latitude 
as  their  southern  boundary,  entered  into  stipulations  for  the 
evacuation  of  the  country  and  military  posts  situated  north  of 
that  limit,  so  soon  as  the  latitude  should  have  been  ascertained. 
For  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  proper  boundary,  com- 
missioners on  the  part  of  each  power  were  to  meet  within  six 
months  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty,  to  ascertain  and 
mark  out  a  proper  line  of  demarkation.  At  length,  after  many 
vexatious  delays,  the  Spanish  authorities,  in  the  spring  of  1798, 
retired  from  the  north  side  of  this  boundary,  reluctantly  yield- 
ing that  which  they  found  themselves  unable  to  hold  by  force.* 

The  remainder  of  West  Florida  near  the  Mississippi,  and 
south  of  the  line  of  demarkation,  continued  under  the  Spanish 
dominion,  and  was  organized  into  a  government,  known  as 
"  the  District  of  Baton  Rouge,"  under  the  administration  of  Don 
Carlos  de  Grandpr6,  lieutenant-governor,  exercising  the  duties 
of  civil  and  military  commandant.  These  duties  he  continued 
to  exercise  for  more  than  twelve  years  after  the  evacuation  of 
the  Natchez  District,  and  until  the  expulsion  of  the  Spanish  au- 
thority from  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  in  December,  1810, 
and  seven  years  after  the  province  of  Louisiana  and  the  island 
of  New  Orleans  had  become  the  territory  of  the  United  States. f 

[A.D.  1803.]  Meantime  the  United  States,  having  acquired 
from  France  the  possession  of  the  province  of  Louisiana,  ad- 
vanced a  new  claim  to  that  portion  of  West  Florida  which  ex- 
tended westward  from  the  Perdido  River  to  the  Mississippi, 
and  north  of  the  island  of  New  Orleans.  The  boundaries  of 
Louisiana,  as  received  from  France,  were  to  be  those  which  it 
possessed  under  the  French  crown  in  1762,  prior  to  the  dis- 
memberment, except  such  claim  as  might  inure  to  Spain  by  the 
secret  treaty  of  1762,  and  to  Great  Britain  by  the  treaty  of 


*  See  book  iv.,  chap,  iv.,  close  of  chapter. 

t  See  book  v.,  chap,  xt.,  "  Territory  of  Orleani." 


A.D.  1813.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


88 


i 


^1 


1763.  The  Federal  government  never  ceased  to  urge  this 
claim  with  the  Spanish  crown  as  a  valid  reason  for  the  restric- 
tion of  the  northern  and  western  boundaries  of  West  Florida. 

[A.D.  1810.]  In  the  mean  time,  the  district  of  Baton  Rouge 
had  become  settled  by  numerous  emigrants  from  the  western 
states  and  territories,  in  addition  to  a  large  number  of  Anglo- 
Americans,  who  had  been  grievously  disappointed  in  finding 
themselves  excluded  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States, 
by  the  line  of  demarkation  established  under  the  treaty  of  Mad- 
rid. The  whole  population  in  the  district,  of  Anglo-American 
descent,  partial  to  the  Federal  government,  and  unwilling  to  sub- 
mit to  an  absolute  monarchy  beyond  the  seas,  was  but  little  short 
of  ten  thousand  persons.  Surrounded  as  they  were  by  Republi- 
can friends  and  Republican  institutions,  which  they  desired  to 
enjoy,  they  could  hardly  be  expected  to  remain  loyal  subjects 
of  a  foreign  prince.  At  length  the  people  revolted  from  their 
Spanish  allegiance,  and  expelling  their  Spanish  rulers,  organ- 
ized a  provisional  government,  and  claimed  the  protection  of 
the  United  States.  On  the  7th  of  December,  1810,  Governor 
Claiborne,  of  the  territory  of  Orleans,  by  order  of  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  took  formal  and  peaceable  possession 
of  the  country,  with  the  troops  of  the  Federal  government. 
Soon  afterward,  all  that  portion  of  West  Florida  known  as  the 
Baton  Rouge  District,  extending  eastward  to  Pearl  River,  was, 
by  act  of  Congress,  annexed  to  the  territory  of  Orleans,  and 
finally  became  incorporated  within  the  limits  of  the  State  of 
Louisiana.* 

[A.D.  1813.]  The  residue  of  West  Florida,  eastward  to  the 
Perdido,  remained  under  the  Spanish  jurisdiction,  and  in  posses- 
sion of  the  Spanish  troops,  until  the  spring  of  1813.  About  this 
time  war  between  the  United  States  on  one  side,  and  Great  Brit- 
ain and  her  Indian  allies  on  the  other,  was  raging  on  the  north- 
ern and  southern  frontiers  of  the  United  States.  Apprehensive 
of  the  inability  or  the  indisposition  of  the  Spanish  authorities  to 
maintain  a  strict  neutrality  in  the  bays,  inlets,  and  harbors  west 
of  Pensacola,  Congress  authorized  the  military  occupation  of 
the  country,  froin  the  Pearl  River  to  th6  Perdido,  by  the  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  seventh  military  district-! 

By  an  order  from  the  Secretary  of  War,  and  received  by 


*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  S99.    See,  also,  book  v.,  chap.  xv.  of  this  work,  "  Ter^ 
ritoiy  of  Orleans."  t  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii..  p.  315. 


64 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


General  Wilkinson  early  in  the  year  1813,  he  was  directed  to 
take  possession  of  all  that  portion  of  Florida  west  of  the  Perdi- 
do  river  and  bay,  and  to  extend  the  Federal  jurisdiction  over 
the  same.  He  accordingly  prepared  to  concentrate  his  forces 
for  the  capture  of  Fort  Charlotte  at  Mobile.  The  naval  forces 
in  the  vicinity  of  New  Orleans  were  ordered  to  concentrate  in 
the  Bay  of  Mobile,  while,  at  the  head  of  a  strong  land  force, 
he  in  person  proceeded  across  the  country  from  the  Mississippi. 
On  the  12th  day  of  April  the  army  encamped  before  the  town  of 
Mobile,  and  the  commander-in-chief  immediately  dispatched  a 
summons  to  the  commandant  of  Fort  Charlotte,  couched  in 
courteous  language,  but  in  a  positive  tone,  demanding  the  evac- 
uation of  the  fort.*  The  Spanish  commandant,  Don  Cayetano 
Perez,  seeing  he  was  completely  surrounded  by  sea  and  land, 
made  no  delay  to  enter  into  negotiations  for  an  honorable  ca- 
pitulation. The  article  of  capitulation  was  signed  on  the  14th, 
stipulating  for  the  evacuation  of  the  fort  on  the  following  day, 
together  with  the  surrender  of  all  the  military  stores,  artillery, 

*  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  summoiu  sent  by  General  Wilkinson,  viz.  : 

"Camp  near  Mobile,  April  12th,  1813. 

"  Sir, — The  troops  of  the  United  States  under  my  command  do  not  approach  you  as 
the  enemy  of  Spain ;  but,  by  the  order  of  the  President,  they  come  to  relieve  the  garri- 
son which  yoa  command  from  the  occupancy  of  a  post  within  the  legitimate  limits  of 
those  states.  I  therefore  hope,  sir,  that  you  may  peacefully  retire  ftvm  Fort  Charlotte 
and  from  the  bounds  of  the  Mississippi  territoiy  (east  of  the  Ferdido  River),  with  the 
garrison  yon  command,  and  the  public  and  private  property  which  may  appertain  there- 
unto. 

"  I  flatter  myself  that  you  will  meet  a  proposition  so  reasonable  and  so  just  in  the 
spirit  with  which  it  is  ofibred,  and  that  no  time  may  be  unnecessarily  lost  in  carrying 
it  into  execution.  My  aide-de-camp.  Major  H.  D.  Piere,  will  present  you  this  note, 
and,  if  convenient  to  you,  will  receive  your  answer.  With  due  consideration  and  re- 
spect, I  have  the  honor  to  be 

"  Your  most  obedient  and  humble  servant, 

"James  Wilkinson. 

"  To  the  officer  commanding  Fort  Charlotte." 

The  following  reply  was  returned,  viz. : 

"  Fort  Charlotte,  Mobile,  April  13th,  1813. 
"  Most  excellent  Sir, — I  have  marked  the  contents  of  your  letter  of  yesterday, 
and  I  have  commissioned  Lieutenant  Don  Francisco  Morrison  to  confer  with  your  ex- 
cellency  on  the  points  in  dispute. 
"  Qod  preserve  your  excellency  many  years. 

"Catetano  Perez. 
"  His  excellency  Don  James  Wilkinson." 

In  the  subsequent  negotiation  it  was  deemed  expedient  to  leave  the  fort,  and  all  the 
munitions  and  public  property  remaining  in  the  hands  of  the  United  States,  the  value 
to  be  settled  by  commiflsioners  of  the  two  governments.  See  Wilkinson's  Memoirs, 
Tol.  i.,  p.  508-512. 


A.D.  1813.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MIS8I88IPPL 


85 


ammunition,  arms,  and  munitions,  to  be  accounted  for  by  the 
United  States  at  a  fair  valuation. 

Among  the  supplies  of  the  fort  left  with  the  American  com- 
mander were  thirty-seven  heavy  pieces  of  ordnance,  seven- 
teen swivels,  brass  and  iron,  besides  a  large  amount  of  muni- 
tions of  war,  comprising  solid  balls  of  different  sizes,  bombs  of 
divers  kinds,  small  arms,  and  every  variety  of  apparatus,  offen- 
sive and  defensive. 

The  Spanish  garrison  retired  quietly  on  board  their  vessels 
and  set  sail  for  Pensacola ;  and  the  American  troops,  agreeably 
to  stipulations,  deferred  entering  the  fort  until  the  Spanish  troops 
had  departed.* 

A  few  days  afterward.  General  Wilkinson  advanced  east- 
ward to  the  Perdido,  and  established  a  small  post  on  its  west- 
ern bank,  while  another  detachment  was  sent  to  fortify  Mobile 
Point,  afterward  known  as  Fort  Boyer.  Thus  terminated  the 
dominion  of  Spain  over  the  western  portion  of  Florida. 

Florida,  thus  restricted,  remained  a  loyal  Spanish  province, 
without  any  other  change  of  boundary,  until  it  was  finally  ce- 
ded to  the  United  States  by  the  treaty  of  Washington  in 
1819.  Yet  it  was  not  exempt  from  the  revolutionary  designs 
and  operations  of  the  revolted  Spanish  provinces  of  South 
America.  The  Patriots  of  South  America,  being  engaged  in 
a  sanguinary  war  with  the  mother  country,  aided  by  adven- 
turers from  the  United  States  and  from  Europe,  omitted  no 
opportunity  for  effecting  the  expulsion  of  the  regal  domina- 
tion from  the  loyal  provinces  of  Florida  and  Texas.  To  ac- 
complish this  purpose,  several  expeditions  were  successively 
fitted  out  in  the  ports  of  South  America  and  the  West  Indies, 
to  operate  against  the  Spanish  authorities  in  these  two  prov- 
inces. 

The  first  expedition  against  East  Florida  entered  the  coun- 
try through  the  St.  Mary's,  occupying  the  Port  of  Fernandina 
and  the  Island  of  Amelia.  From  this  point  operations  were  ex- 
tended until  the  Patriot  forces  had  extended  their  authority  over 
the  whole  district  comprised  in  the  government  of  St.  Augustine. 
But  the  government  established  by  them  was  of  short  dura- 
tion. It  was  on  the  12th  of  April,  1812,  that  the  Spanish  gov- 
ernor, Don  Jose  Lopez,  entered  into  terms  of  capitulation,  by 
which  he  surrendered  the  Port  of  Fernandina,  including  the 

*  See  Wilkinion'8  Memoirs,  vol  i.,  514-516. 


80 


HISTORY    OF    TUB 


[nooK  I. 


whole  island,  and  his  entire  command,  to  the  "superior  forces'* 
of  the  Patriots.  A  provisional  government  was  organized, 
and  the  authorities  made  formal  application  for  admission  into 
the  Federal  Union,  as  an  integral  portion  of  the  United  States.* 
But  the  government  of  the  United  States,  true  to  its  treaty  ob- 
ligations to  Spain,  declined  to  receive  the  province  from  the 
usurpers,  and  established  a  competent  military  force  upon  the 
St.  Mary's,  to  enforce  neutrality  on  the  border,  and  to  restrain 
any  popular  outbreak  of  the  American  people.  At  the  same 
time,  the  American  government  proposed  to  the  Spanish  min- 
ister to  take  possession  of  the  country  in  trust  for  the  King  of 
Spain,  until  his  Catholic  majesty  should  find  himself  in  a  condi- 
tion to  maintain  the  neutrality  of  the  country,  so  as  to  secure  the 
proper  execution  of  the  revenue  laws  of  the  United  States 
against  a  band  of  smugglers  by  which  the  St.  Mary's  River 
was  infested.  General  George  Matthews  and  Colonel  John 
M'Kee  were  authorized  commissioners  on  the  part  of  the 
United  States.f 

On  the  12th  of  June,  Sebastian  Kinderlan,  with  a  re-enforce- 
ment of  royal  troops,  expelled  the  Patriots,  and  re-established 
the  royal  authority.  The  Federal  troops,  who  had  advanced 
to  the  south  side  of  the  St.  Mary's,  were  ordered  to  retire 
within  the  limits  of  Georgia.J 

The  foreign  occupancy  of  Florida  had  become  a  source  of 
great  annoyance,  not  only  to  the  Federal  government,  but  to 
the  western  people  in  general.  Surrounded,  as  it  were,  by 
the  territory  of  the  United  States,  with  an  extensive  boundary, 
much  of  it  designated  only  by  a  surveyor's  line,  separating 
two  races  so  radically  different,  under  civil  and  religious  insti- 
tutions so  strongly  repugnant  to  each  other,  it  was  certain  the 
frontier  people  could  never  harmonize ;  and  the  Federal  exec- 
utive had  for  many  years  endeavored  to  prevent  the  collision 
of  the  advancing  settlements  by  the  peaceable  acquisition  of 
the  whole  of  Florida ;  but  Spain  preferred  to  prolong  her  fee- 
ble authority  over  the  province. 


*  The  Patriot  forces  comprised  an  armament  of  nine  gun-boats,  with  a  full  comple- 
ment of  marines  and  infantiy,  composed  of  adventnren  from  all  countries,  including  a 
lai^e  proportion  of  Americans.  The  forces  were  under  the  command  of  Commodore 
Campbell  and  Colonel  Asliley. 

t  A  more  extended  account  of  the  operations  connected  with  the  revolution  upon 
the  Island  of  Amelia  may  be  found  in  Willianu's  Florida,  p.  191-196.  Sec,  also,  Amer- 
ican State  Papers,  vol.  ix.,p.  41-46  ;  and  156,  7,  Boston  edition  of  1819.  i  Ibid. 


A.D.  1815.] 


VAI.LBY    OF    Till:    MlriBMBim. 


87 


At  length  the  United  Stntes  were  involve<l  in  a  war  with 
Great  Britain,  who,  disregarding  the  neutrality  of  the  Spanish 
territory,  introduced  her  emissaries  through  the  Spanish  ports, 
to  arm  the  savages  of  Florida  and  the  Mississippi  territory 
against  the  defenseless  frontier  settlements.*  In  the  progress 
of  the  war,  the  British  fleets  and  armies  destined  for  the  inva- 
sion of  the  United  States  and  the  destruction  of  American 
ports  were  allowed  to  enter  the  ports,  and  to  garrison  the 
strong  forts  of  West  Florida,  from  which  they  operated  upon 
the  frontier  settlements. 

[A.D.  1815.]  Nor  did  this  violation  of  a  neutral  territory 
cease  with  the  termination  of  the  war.  After  the  war  had 
terminated,  and  the  treaty  of  peace  with  Great  Britain  had 
been  ratified,  and  after  the  savages  had  been  vanquished,  sub- 
dued, and  had  entered  into  amicable  arrangements  by  a  treaty 
of  peace,  the  emissaries  of  Great  Britain,  armed  with  the  pow- 
erful patronage  of  that  government,  continued  with  impunity 
to  make  Florida  the  theatre  of  renewed  operations  for  involv- 
ing the  United  States  in  the  horrors  of  another  Indian  war. 

It  was  in  the  spring  of  1815,  immediately  after  the  promul- 
gation of  peace  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain, 
that  Captain  Woodbine  resumed  his  intrigues  with  the  Indians 
of  Florida,  for  the  avowed  purpose  of  instigating  the  Semi- 
noles  and  Muskhogees  to  renew  hostilities  against  the  frontier 
settlements  of  Georgia  and  the  Mississippi  Territory.  To  the 
effects  of  his  subsequent  operations,  under  the  directions  of 
Colonel  Nichols,  an  officer  of  his  Britannic  majesty's  navy,  and 
to  his  successors,  Alexander  Arbuthnot  and  Robert  C.  Am- 
brister,  must  be  ascribed  the  existence  of  the  "Seminole 
War,"  which  resulted,  finally,  in  the  entire  exclusion  of  all 
foreign  dominion  from  Florida. 

Adopting  the  opinion  of  Lord  Castlereagh,  that  the  ninth  ar- 
ticle of  the  treaty  of  Ghent  virtually  entitled  the  Creek  Indians 
to  a  restoration  of  all  the  lands  they  had  relinquished  to  the 
United  States  by  the  treaty  of  Fort  Jackson  in  1814,  Cap- 
tain Woodbine  entered  upon  the  arduous  task  of  enforcing  an 
admission  of  their  claim. 

Having  conducted  a  colony  of  negro  slaves  to  East  Florida, 
he  ascended  the  Appalachicola  River,  under  the  directions  of 
Colonel  Nichols,  and  commenced  the  construction  of  a  strong 

*  See  book  v.,  chap,  xiv.,  "  Creek  War." 


88 


HISTORY   OP   TUB 


[rook  I. 


fort,  ns  the  hendqunrtcrs  of  his  future  operations.  At  thiH  place 
he  wns  abundantly  supplied  with  artillery,  munitions  of  war, 
arms,  and  ammunition  from  the  British  fleet,  for  the  use  of  the 
savages  in  the  contemplated  enterprise.* 

He  immediately  opened  a  correspondence  with  Colonel  Ben- 
jamin Hawkins,  Indian  agent  of  the  United  States  for  the  Creek 
nation.  In  a  letter,  dated  April  2Nth,  1815,  he  announces  him- 
self as  the  advocate  of  the  Indians,  and  notifies  the  United 
States  agent  that  the  Creek  Indians  had  determined  to  demand 
the  restoration  of  all  the  lands  ceded  to  the  United  States  by 
the  treaty  of  Fort  Jackson,  agreeably  to  the  provisions  of  the 
ninth  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent:  "The  Indians  being  inde- 
pendent allies  of  Great  Britain." 

In  a  subsequent  communication,  dated  May  12th,  he  repre- 
sents himself  as  "commanding  his  Britannic  majesty's  forces  in 
the  Floridas,"  and  declares  that  "  he  has  ordered  the  Indians 
to  stand  on  the  defensive,  and  having  sent  them  a  large  supply 
of  arms  and  ammunition,  has  told  them  to  put  to  death  without 
mercy  any  one  molesting  them."  Again  :  "  They  have  given 
their  consent  to  wait  your  answer  before  they  take  revenge  ; 
but,  sir,  they  are  impatient  for  it,  and  are  well  armed,  as  the 
whole  nation  now  is,  and  stored  with  ammunition  and  provis- 


*  The  following  dooumont  !■  lolocted  from  a  large  mass  of  documentary  evidence 
transmitted  to  the  War  Department  from  the  commanding  general,  showing  tlie  cause  of 
the  Seminole  war,  and  referred  by  Congress  to  the  committee  on  the  forcible  occupancy 
of  Florida  by  Qencral  Jackson,  viz. : 

Deposition  of  Samuel  Jcrvait. 

Samuel  Jervais,  being  duly  sworn,  states  tlmt  ho  has  been  a  sergeant  of  marines,  in 
the  British  service,  for  thirteen  years  past ;  that  "  about  a  month  ago  he  left  Appalach- 
icola,  where  ho  had  been  stationed  for  several  months ;  that  the  English  colonel,  Nich- 
ols, had  promised  the  hostile  Indians  at  that  place  a  supply  of  arms  and  ammunition, 
a  large  quantity  of  which  had  been  delivered  to  them  a  few  days  before  his  departure, 
and  after  the  news  of  peace  between  England  and  the  United  States  had  been  confirm- 
ed and  reached  Appalachicola ;  that  among  the  articles  delivered  were  four  twelve- 
))Ounder  cannon,  one  howitzer,  two  cohoms,  alxtut  three  thousand  stand  of  arms,  and 
uearly  three  thousand  barrels  of  powder  and  ball ;  that  the  British  left  with  the  Indians 
between  three  and  four  hundred  negroes,  taken  firom  the  United  States,  and  chiefly  from 
Louisiana ;  that  the  arms  and  ammunition  were  for  the  use  of  the  Indians  and  negroes, 
and  for  the  purpose,  as  he  understood,  of  war  with  the  United  States;  that  the  Indians 
were  assured  by  the  British  commander  that,  according  to  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  all  the 
lands  ceded  by  the  treaty  with  Geheral  Jackson  were  to  be  restored ;  otherwise  tlie  In* 
dians  must  fight  for  them,  and  the  British  would  in  a  short  time  assist  them. 

hi* 

Samuel -(- JxnvAii." 


mark. 


Sworn  to  and  subscribed  before  me,  this  9th  day  of  May,  1815, ; 
L.  JUDSON,  J.  P.  ! 


A.D.   1810.] 


VAM.RY    OP   TliR   MIHSIHSim. 


tAII." 


ions,  having  a  strong-hold  to  retire  upon  in  case  superior  force 
appeurs." 

Soon  afterward,  in  company  with  the  "  Prophet  Francis," 
also  called  Hillia-hadjo,  and  a  deputation  of  Creek  chiefs,  Col- 
(tttal  Nichols  departed  for  Kiigland,  for  the  purpose  of  forming 
fi  treaty  of  alliance,  oftbnsive  and  defensive,  with  the  prince- 
r«?g<*iit.  The  formation  of  such  treaty  was  prevented  only  hy 
the  remonstrance  of  the  American  minister,  John  Quincy 
Adams,  then  resident  in  London.  The  British  premier,  Lord 
Castlereagh,  and  the  Earl  of  Bathurst,  cautiously  avoided  any 
written  corroR[)ondence  on  the  subject;  but  Ilillis-liiidjo  was 
received  with  attention,  and,  as  a  mark  of  distinction  and  favor, 
the  prince-regent  conferred  upon  him  the  rank  of  "  brigadier- 
general  in  his  majesty's  service,"  together  with  a  splendid  suit 
of  British  uniform.* 

[A.D.  1810.]  Before  the  lapse  of  twelve  months,  Woodbine 
had  completed  his  "strong-hold"  on  the  bank  of  the  A|>palach- 
icola,  twenty-five  miles  above  its  mouth;  it  was  now  occupied 
by  a  garrison  of  more  than  one  hundred  negroes  and  a  few  In- 
dians. Occasional  hostilities  had  been  committed  against  the 
American  settlements,  and  military  posts  were  established  on 
the  Chattahoochy  for  the  protection  of  the  Georgia  frontier. 
Among  these  was  "Camp  Crawford,"  just  above  the  Florida 
line.  The  supplies  for  this  post  were  received  by  way  of  the 
river  through  the  Spanish  province,  and  by  passing  immedi- 
ately under  the  guns  of  the  negro  fort  which  commanded  the 
river. t     The  commandant  of  the  fort  was  Gar^on,  a  French 

*  All  tlieso  facts,  and  many  othori,  wore  fully  cstablisliod  bcforo  the  committee  of 
Congress  in  1819,  in  the  invcstigntion  instituted  upon  the  conrao  pursued  by  General 
Jackson  in  taking  military  (lossossion  of  Florida  for  the  better  protection  of  the  fron- 
tiers. The  subject  of  British  intrigue  in  Florida,  and  the  diabolical  machinations  of 
British  agents  in  provoking  the  Scmtnolcs  to  war,  ia  discussed  in  a  lucid  and  able 
manner  in  the  excellent  speech  of  the  Hon.  Oeorgo  Poindextcr,  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives of  the  United  States  on  the  1st  and  2d  of  February,  1819.  This  speech  was 
an  ablo  vindication  of  Qeneral  Jackson  for  his  occupancy  of  the  Spanish  posts  of  St. 
Mark's  and  Pensacola. 

This  speech  ia  contained  in  Williston'a  "  Eloquence  of  the  United  States,"  vol.  iii.. 
p.  128-187.  It  was  also  published  extensively  in  the  newspapers  of  the  day.  See 
Misaiaaippi  State  Gazette  of  May  8th  and  12th,  1819. 

t  Thia  fort  waa  described  as  follows :  viz..  It  was  situated  on  a  beautiful  high  bluff, 
with  a  large  creek  near  th^  base,  and  protected  by  a  swamp  in  the  rear,  which  ren- 
dered the  approach  of  artillery  very  diflBcult.  The  parapet  was  fifteen  feet  high  and 
eighteen  feet  thick.  It  was  defended  by  one  thirty-two  pounder,  three  twenty-four 
pounders,  several  of  them  inscribed  "  His  Britannic  mi^esty's  frigate  Cydnus,"  two  nine 
ponuders,  two  six  pounders,  and  one  elegant  brass  five  and  a  half  inch  howitzer.  It 
contained  in  its  magazines  a  large  amount  of  arms  and  ammouition.    One  magazine 


"W^-v 


00 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  I. 


negro,  in  connection  with  the  Chocta  chief, "  Red  Sticks ;"  and 
within  its  walls  were  sheltered  no  less  than  two  hundred  negro 
women  and  children.  Near  the  fort  the  fields  were  fine,  and 
others  extended  up  and  down  the  river  for  nearly  fifty  miles. 

From  this  general  rendezvous,  marauding  expeditions  had 
been  sent  out,  not  only  against  the  defenseless  settlements  of 
the  Georgia  frontier,  but  also  piratical  excursions  against  trad- 
ing vessels  on  the  coast.  Such  was  the  prelude  to  the  Sem- 
inole war. 

On  the  16th  of  August,  Colonel  Clinch,  commanding  at  Camp 
Crawford,  received  intelligence  that  two  transports  laden  with 
provisions,  stores,  and  ordnance,  convoyed  by  two  gun-boats, 
were  lying  in  the  bay  near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  awaiting  an 
escort  of  United  States  troops  from  his  command,  as  protection 
against  the  fort  on  the  river.  The  instructions  to  Colonel 
Clinch  required  him,  in  case  of  opposition  to  the  ascent  of  the 
vessels  by  the  fort,  to  reduce  it  by  military  force. 

Next  day  Colonel  Clinch,  with  a  detachment  of  two  com- 
panies, under  the  command  of  Major  Muhlenberg  and  Captain 
Z.  Taylor,  comprising  one  hundred  and  sixteen  choice  men,  de- 
scended the  river  in  order  to  conduct  the  supplies  above  the 
point  of  danger.  On  the  18th  he  was  joined  by  Major  M'ln- 
tosh  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  friendly  Creeks,  and  on  the 
following  day  by  two  other  detachments  of  Indians,  who  had 
set  out  for  the  capture  of  negroes  in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort. 

With  this  force  he  took  up  his  position  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
negro  fort  to  await  the  ascent  of  Lieutenant  Loomis  with  the 
transports  and  gun-boats.  On  the  same  evening  an  express 
from  Lieutenant  Loomis  informed  him  that  a  watering  party, 
near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  had  been  attacked  by  a  detach- 
ment of  negroes,  who  had  killed  one  midshipman  and  two  sail- 
ors, and  captured  a  third.  Colonel  Clinch  determined,  without 
further  delay,  to  invest  the  fort,  and  the  Indians  were  directed 
to  take  their  positions  around  the  fort,  and  open  upon  it  a  scat- 
tering fire.  The  negro  garrison  commenced  a  terrible  dis- 
charge of  artillery,  designed  to  frighten  the  Indians,  and  with 
no  other  injury  to  the  besiegers.  The  demand  of  the  Indians 
for  the  surrender  of  the  fort  was  answered  by  Garfon  with  the 


contained  six  handred  barrels  of  powder,  and  the  other  one  hundred  and  sixty-three, 
besides  aboat  three  thonsand  stand  of  arms,  and  other  valuable  property  to  a  large 
amount. 


A.D.  1816.] 


VALLEY   OF  THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


91 


utmost  contempt,  after  which  he  hoisted  the  English  jack.  Such 
was  the  state  of  things  until  the  arrival  of  the  whole  force  of 
ffun-boats  and  vessels  from  below. 

It  was  on  the  26th  that  the  escort  and  convoy  arrived  with- 
in four  miles  of  the  fort,  when  preparations  were  made  to  take 
it  by  storm.  For  this  purpose  a  battery  was  erected  during 
the  night,  and  early  the  next  morning  the  two  gun-boats,  pre- 
pared for  action,  moved  up  in  handsome  style,  and  moored  near 
the  battery.  In  a  few  minutes  they  were  saluted  by  a  shot 
from  a  thirty-two  pounder  in  the  fort.  This  was  the  signal  for 
the  attack,  and  the  fire  was  returned  in  gallant  style.  At  the 
fifth  discharge,  a  hot  shot  from  gun-boat  No.  154  penetrated  the 
great  magazine,  and  immediately  the  fort  was  blown  up  with 
the  most  awful  explosion.  The  scene  in  the  fort  was  horrible 
beyond  description ;  nearly  the  whole  of  the  inmates  were  in- 
volved in  one  indiscriminate  destruction ;  not  one  sixth  of  the 
whole  escaped.  The  cries  of  the  wounded  and  dying,  min- 
gled with  the  shouts  and  yells  of  the  Indians,  rendered  the  con- 
fusion horrible  in  the  extreme. 

Three  thousand  stand  of  arms  and  six  hundred  barrels  of 
powder  were  destroyed  by  the  explosion.  The  whole  amount 
of  property  destroyed  and  taken  was  not  less  than  $200,000 
in  value.  One  magazine,  containing  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
three  barrels  of  powder,  was  saved  by  the  victors.  The  negro 
commander,  Garqon,  and  the  Chocta  chief,  "  Red  Sticks,"  were 
delivered  to  the  Indians,  who  put  them  to  a  painful  death.* 
Woodbine  had  escaped  the  evening  before. 

On  the  following  day,  intelligence  was  received  of  the  ap- 
proach of  a  formidable  body  of  hostile  Seminoles.  Finding 
Colonel  Clinch  wqU  prepared  to  receive  them,  they  prudently 
declined  an  attack.  Preparations  were  immediately  made  by 
the  State  of  Georgia  and  by  the  Federal  government  for  the 
efficient  protection  of  the  exposed  frontier. 

Such  was  the  commencement  of  the  Seminole  war  in  Florida, 

General  Gaines,  of  the  United  States  army,  commanding  at 
Fort  Scott,  on  the  Georgia  frontier,  proceeded  to  chastise  the 
hostile  Seminoles.  At  the  first  Indian  town  attacked  in  De- 
cember, on  Clinch  River,  the  evidences  of  British  treachery 
were  fully  presented.  In  the  cabin  of  Neainathla  the  chief 
was  found  a  British  uniform  of  scarlet  cloth,  with  gold  epau- 

*  WiUiama's  Florida,  p.  SOS,  203. 


92 


HISTORY    OP  THE 


[book  I. 


lets.  According  to  the  certificate  found  in  the  pocket,  and 
signed  by  the  secretary  of  Colonel  Nichols,  "  Neamathla  was 
a  faithful  British  subject."* 

The  Seminoles,  however,  being  deprived  of  their  principal 
leaders,  and  especially  the  ferocious  Woodbine,  were  frustra- 
ted in  their  operations ;  yet  for  more  than  twelve  months  they 
were  prone  to  hostilities,  and  from  time  to  time  committed 
frequent  murders  and  depredations  upon  the  frontier  settle- 
ments, which  required  the  maintenance  of  an  active  surveillance 
on  the  part  of  the  Federal  troops  to  prevent  any  general  con- 
cert of  operation. 

[A.D.  1817.]  While  these  events  were  transpiring  upon  the 
Indian  frontier,  the  Patriot  forces  again  invaded  East  Florida, 
taking  possession  of  Amelia  Island,  from  which  they  contem- 
plated the  entire  subjugation  of  the  whole  province.  In  the 
present  case,  the  invasion  was  made  by  General  Gregor 
M'Gregor  and  Admiral  Aury,  acting  under  the  authority  of 
the  "United  Provinces  of  New  Grenada  and  Venezuela." 
Having  learned  that  Spain  contemplated  ceding  Florida  to  the 
United  States,  they  deemed  it  an  opportune  occasion  to  wrest 
it  from  the  Spanish  crown.  To  this  end  they  proceeded  to 
augment  their  forces,  by  enlisting  into  their  ranks  every  de- 
scription of  adventurers,  embracing  outlaws  from  the  United 
States,  slaves,  smugglers,  English  emissaries,  among  whom  was 
Captain  Woodbine,  and  partisans  picked  up  in  the  streets  of 
Savannah,  Charleston,  and  other  ports  of  the  United  States. 
To  induce  the  Federal  government  to  be  a  silent  spectator  in 
the  spoliation  of  the  Spanish  province,  General  M'Gregor  at- 
tempted to  forestall  any  movement  on  the  part  of  the  executive 
of  the  United  States,  by  avowing  it  to  be  his  object,  after  a 
temporary  occupation,  to  provide  for  its  annexation  to  the 
United  States. 

On  the  30th  of  July,  1817,  the  Spanish  governor  entered  into 
a  capitulation  for  the  surrender  of  the  province  to  the  Patriot 
forces ;  thus  again  excluding  the  authority  of  Spain. 

But  with  his  incongruous  mass  of  reckless  adventurers,  no 
permanent  government  could  be  sustained.  Dissensions  arose ; 
and  General  M'Gregor,  having  been  supplanted  by  the  artful 
intrigue  of  Hubbard,  and  having  been  induced  to  believe  that 
his  personal  security  was  endangered  by  his  enemies,  retired 

*  WiUianu'8  Florida,  p.  304. 


A.D.  1818.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


03 


from  the  command,  and  accompanied  the  notorious  Woodbine 
to  England.  It  was  not  long  before  Aury  lost  his  influence, 
and  retired  also,  leaving  Hubbard  in  chief  command. 

The  government,  under  the  usurped  authority,  had  but  short 
duration.  To  prevent  the  lawless  assemblage,  which  concen- 
trated near  the  frontier  of  the  United  States,  and  interrupted 
the  due  operation  of  the  revenue  laws,  the  Federal  government 
determined  to  take  forcible  possession  of  the  country  until 
Spain  should  be  able  to  maintain  her  authority  over  it.  Ac- 
cordingly, on  the  first  of  January,  1818,  in  obedience  to  instruc- 
tions. Major  J.  Bankhead  and  Commodore  J.  D.  Henly,  with 
a  division  of  the  land  and  naval  forces  of  the  United  States, 
had  expelled  the  Patriots  and  took  possession  of  the  country.* 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Seminoles  had  imbodied  in  large  num- 
bers upon  the  Clinch  and  Appalachicola  Rivers,  and  upon  the 
St.  Mary's,  near  the  frontiers  of  Georgia.  In  addition  to  the 
regular  troops  of  the  United  States,  the  Georgia  militia  had 
been  called  into  service,  and  were  placed  under  the  command 
of  General  Gaines.  From  the  threatening  attitude  in  this  quar- 
ter. General  Andrew  Jackson  was  again  called  into  the  field 
as  commander-in-chief  of  the  troops  operating  in  this  quarter, 
with  authority  to  call  upon  the  executives  of  the  adjacent  states 
for  such  force  as  he  might  deem  necessary  for  the  subjugation 
of  the  Indian  forces,  estimated  by  General  Gaines  at  twenty- 
seven  hundred  warriors. 

[A.D.  1818.]  Early  in  January  following,  he  advanced  into 
the  Creek  nation,  at  the  head  of  a  large  body  of  Tennessee  vol- 
unteers, on  his  route  to  the  seat  of  war.  On  the  22d  of  Janu- 
ary, he  concluded  a  treaty  of  peace  and  alliance  with  the 
friendly  Creeks,  and  early  in  February  they  agreed  to  march 
under  their  chief,  Major  M'Intosh,  to  fight  the  Seminoles  in 
Georgia  and  Florida. 

On  the  first  of  March,  General  Jackson,  with  the  Tennessee 
volunteers  and  the  friendly  Creeks,  arrived  at  Fort  Scott,  and 
took  command  of  the  army.  A  few  days  afterward,  he  took 
up  his  line  of  march,  with  the  united  forces,  down  the  Appa- 
lachicola to  Fort  Gadsden.  On  the  way  the  country  was 
scoured  by  the  friendly  Indians,  and  by  detachments  of  caval- 
ry, which  brought  in  a  large  number  of  prisoners  from  the 
Seminoles. 

*  See  American  State  Papers,  vol.  xii.,  p.  390-416,  Boiton  edition  of  1819. 


\ 


94 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  I. 


I 


On  the  26th  of  March,  having  received  strong  re-enforce- 
ments, he  set  out  for  the  Mickasukie  towns,  in  East  Florida, 
his  whole  force  amounting  to  five  hundred  regulars,  one  thou- 
sand militia,  and  one  thousand  eight  hundred  Indians.  On  the 
first  of  April,  the  Mickasukie  towns  were  utterly  destroyed ; 
and  the  same  fate  soon  afterward  attended  the  Fowel  towns, 
situated  upon  Mickasukie  Lake  and  on  the  Oscilla  River,  both 
of  which  were  inhabited  by  hostile  Creeks.  The  Indians  fled 
before  the  troops,  and  made  but  little  resistance,  leaving  one 
thousand  head  of  fine  cattle  and  large  quantities  of  corn. 

At  the  Mickasukie  towns,  about  fifty  miles  north  of  St. 
Mark's,  were  found  nearly  three  hundred  scalps,  taken  promis- 
cuously from  the  heads  of  not  only  men  and  women,  but  of 
children  and  infants.  Many  of  them  were  of  quite  recent  date, 
and  fifty  of  them  were,  suspended  over  the  council  square,  upon 
a  painted  war-pole.* 

Receiving  intelligence  of  the  aid  \«rhich  had  been  given  the 
Indians  at  St.  Mark's,  on  the  Appalachy  River,  General  Jack- 
son took  up  his  Hne  of  march  for  that  post.  This  post,  situated 
six  miles  from  Appalachy  Bay,  was  defended  by  a  strong  Span- 
ish fort,  mounting  twenty  pieces  of  heavy  ordnance.  The 
agency  of  the  ofllicers  of  this  post,  and  the  people  of  the  place, 
in  abetting  and  supplying  the  Indians,  was  undoubted,  and 
General  Jackson  demanded  its  immediate  surrender.  The 
commander  capitulated,  the  garrison  was  permitted  to  retire 
to  Fensacola,  and  the  American  troops  took  possession  of  the 
fort. 

Among  the  prisoners  captured  near  St.  Mark's  was  the 
"  Prophet  Francis,"  or  Hillis-hadjo,  and  another  notorious  In- 
dian chief,  both  of  whom  were  formally  sentenced  to  death, 
and  hung  without  delay. 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  Suwanee  River,  on  the  18th  of  April, 
Robert  C.  Ambrister,  a  British  agent  under  Alexander  Arbuth- 
not,  was  captured,  and  kept  in  close  confinement  for  further 
examination. 

From  St.  Mark's  the  general  took  up  his  line  of  march  for 
the  Seminole  towns  on  the  Suwanee  River,  situated  about  one 
hundred  and  seven  miles  southeast  of  St.  Mark's.  In  this  vi- 
cinity were  assembled  a  large  body  of  Indians  and  negroes, 
amounting  to  about  two  thousand,  acting  under  the  orders  of 

*  See  Williama'a  Florida,  p.  305 ;  also,  p.  314. 


//* 


A.D.  1818.]  VALLEY    OF  THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


95 


Arbuthnot,  who  was  supplying  them  with  arms,  ammunition, 
and  military  stores.  On  the  first  appearance  of  the  army  at 
these  towns,  the  Indians  made  a  show  of  resistance ;  but  they 
soon  fled  with  precipitation  eastward,  and  many  took  shelter 
under  the  walls  of  St.  Augustine.  The  fugitives  were  pursued 
several  miles  until  dark,  when  the  troops  encountered  an  en 
campment  of  three  hundred  and  forty  negroes,  who  fougiit  with 
great  desperation  until  eighty  of  them  were  killed,  when  the  re- 
mainder fled.  Three  hundred  Indian  women  and  children  were 
taken  prisoners,  and  many  others  were  killed  by  the  Indians,  to 
prevent  their  captivity.* 

While  here,  the  videttes  succeeded  in  capturing  the  notori 
ous  Alexander  Arbuthnot,  who,  ignorant  of  the  proximity  of  the 
American  forces,  in  a  canoe,  with  two  negroes  and  an  Indian, 
had  approached  the  American  Hues  to  reconnoiter,  when  he 
was  captured  by  the  videttes  on  duty.  He  was  properly  se- 
cured in  camp,  and  next  morning  a  detachment  was  sent  to 
seize  his  schooner,  laden  with  arms,  ammunition,  and  valuable 
stores,  then  lying  in  Wakassee  Bay,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Su- 
wanee. 

During  the  next  ten  days.  Major  M*Intosh,  with  his  Indian 
warriors,  scoured  the  country  around,  and  was  engaged  in  nu- 
merous skirmishes  with  the  hostile  Seminoles,  of  whom  many 
were  killed,  besides  a  large  number  taken  prisoners.  Their  re- 
sources were  destroyed,  and  their  towns  and  fields  were  rav- 
aged with  fire  and  sword. 

On  the  first  of  May,  a  court-martial,  with  General  Gaines 
presiding,  found  Arbuthnot  and  Ambrister  guilty  on  three 
charges:  1.  Exciting  the  negroes  and  Indians  to  commit  mur- 
ders upon  the  people  of  the  United  States ;  2.  Supplying  them 
with  arms  and  ammunition  for  offensive  operations ;  3.  Acting 
as  spies.  General  Jackson  determined  not  to  interpose  his  au- 
thority between  the  guilty  and  their  doom,  and  they  were  sen- 
tenced to  die ;  Ambrister  by  shooting,  and  Arbuthnot  by  hang- 
ing.    The  execution  of  the  sentence  was  speedily  enforced,  f 

*  Williatng's  Florida,  p.  206. 

t  After  the  destruction  of  the  negro  fort,  Colonel  Nichols,  from  the  Island  of  New 
Providence,  dispatched  Alexander  Arbuthnot,  a  British  oflScer,  to  succeed  Captain 
Woodbine  in  his  diabolical  operations.  "  He  arrived  in  Florida  in  the  guise  of  a  Brit- 
ish trader  in  the  year  1817,  and  simultaneously  the  war-whoopresounded  through  the 
forests,  and  the  blood  of  our  citizens  began  to  flow  along  the  borders  of  Georgia  and 
the  Alabama  Territory." — Hon.  Oeorge  Poindcxter's  Speech  on  the  Seminole  War. 

In  one  of  liis  letters,  directed  to  the  British  minister,  Mr.  Bagot,  resident  at  Wash- 


f^ 


t.* 


M 


HISTORY   OF    THE 


[book  I. 


Arbuthnot  was  justly  considered  the  author  of  the  Seminole 
war,  under  the  direction  of  Woodbine,  who  escaped  from  jus- 
tice in  the  United  States  to  meet  it  in  another  country,  and  at 
a  later  date,  from  the  hands  of  that  race  which  had  absorbed 
all  his  sympathies.* 

Ambrister  was  a  young  man,  apparently  not  over  twenty- 
five  years  old,  having  a  fine  person,  and  holding  the  rank  of 
lieutenant  of  marines  in  the  British  navy ;  but  he  died  like  a 
weak  woman,  repining  at  his  merited  fate.  Although,  in  many 
parts  of  the  United  States  and  in  England,  sympathizers  affect- 
ed to  censure  the  sentence  of  these  two  men,  yet  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States  and  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain  were 
constrained  to  sanction  their  execution  as  a  merited  doom,  and 
permit  their  names  to  be  consigned  to  infamy. 

The  war  in  this  quarter  having  been  thus  brought  to  a  close, 
General  Jackson  discharged  the  militia,  whose  term  of  service 
had  nearly  expired,  and  at  the  head  of  the  regular  troops,  a 
few  volunteers,  and  the  friendly  Indians  under  Major  M'Intosh, 
marched  for  Pensacola,  where  his  presence  had  become  neces- 
sary. Parties  of  Indians  in  that  vicinity  had  committed  fre- 
quent murders,  and  had  attacked  boats  conveying  supplies  for 
his  army.  The  Governor  of  Pensacola  had  also  refused  to 
permit  his  vessels  a  free  passage  through  the  bay  and  up  the 
Escambia  River.  Lieutenant  Eddy,  in  charge  of  a  boat  load- 
ed with  provisions,  had  been  attacked  on  the  Escambia,  in 
April,  by  Indians,  who  killed  one  and  wounded  two  men.  To 
chastise  these  outrages,  Major  Young,  from  Fort  Montgomery, 
at  the  head  of  seventy-five  mounted  men,  pursued  the  fugi- 
tives within  one  mile  of  Pensacola.  Here,  encountering  them 
at  the  Bayou  Texar,  in  a  severe  engagement,  he  slew  thirty 

ington  City,  he  requested  a  supply  of  the  foUowing  articles  for  the  use  of  the  Indians : 
viz.:  , 

A  quantity  of  powder,  lead,  muskets,  and  flints  sufficient  for  arming  one  thousand 
Indians,  aa  follows : 

1000  muskets,  and  more  smaller  pieces,  if  possible. 

10,000  flints,  a  portion  for  rifles,  put  up  separate. 

50  casks  of  gunpowder,  a  proportion  for  the  rifle. 

3000  knives,  six  to  nine  inches  blade,  of  good  qualitj'. 

1000  tomahawks,  and  one  hundred  pounds  of  vermilion. 

SOOO  pounds  lead,  independen*"  v'  ball,  for  muskegs. — See  Congressional  Docu- 
ments connected  with  the  Semim. ■•■  IVur. 

*  Woodbine,  after  his  escape  from  the  negro  fort  on  the  Appalachicola,  fled  to  Mex- 
ico, where  he  remained  until  1837,  when  he  and  his  family  were  murdered  at  Cam- 
peachy  by  negroes.    8ec  Williams's  Florida,  p.  306. 


,t^ 


A.D.  1818.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


97 


of  them,  and  took  seventy-five  prisoners.  These  Indians  had 
been  virtually  protected  by  the  Spanish  authorities. 

It  was  on  the  24th  of  May  that  General  Jackson  reached 
the  vicinity  of  Pensacola.  Being  assured  of  the  conduct  of  the 
governor,  who  had  refused  to  permit  boats  bearing  the  Amer- 
ican flag,  with  provisions  for  his  troops,  to  ascend  the  Escam- 
bia, while  he  countenanced  the  hostile  attitude  of  the  Indians, 
he  determined  to  take  effectual  steps  to  remove  these  difflcul- 
ties  in  future.  To  this  effect,  he  determined  to  expel  the  per- 
fidious Spaniards  from  Pensacola,  as  he  had  from  St.  Mark's. 

Apprehensive  of  this  measure,  the  governor  sent  a  messen- 
ger to  meet  him  as  he  approached  Pensacola,  warning  him 
that  the  whole  Spanish  force  would  be  brought  to  resist  any 
such  attempt.  The  general  replied  that  he  would  return  his 
answer  in  the  morning,  and  continued  his  march.  The  gov- 
ernor well  knew  the  man  he  had  to  deal  with,  and  next  morn- 
ing, at  nine  o'clock,  when  General  Jackson  marched  into  the 
town,  the  governor  had  retired  into  the  Fort  Barancas,  and 
left  him  undisputed  possession  of  the  place. 

Three  days  afterward,  the  army  marched  to  the  Barancas, 
and  took  position  about  four  hundred  yards  west  of  the  fort. 
The  night  was  spent  in  erecting  a  breast- work.  In  the  morn- 
ing the  Spaniards  opened  upon  it  with  two  twenty-four  pound- 
ers, and  the  Americans  returned  the  fire  actively  from  one  how- 
itzer, and  made  preparations  to  storm  the  fort.  At  three  o'clock 
P.M.  a  flag  from  the  fort  conveyed  the  governor's  proposition 
to  capitulate.  The  capitulation  was  forthwith  concluded  and 
signed.  The  fort  was  surrendered,  and  the  governor,  with 
the  garrison,  was  permitted  peaceably  to  retire  to  Havana. 
The  American  troops  occupied  the  post,  and  Colonel  King  was 
subsequently  left  in  command  at  Pensacola. 

On  the  29th  of  May,  the  commander-in-chief  issued  his  proc- 
lamation to  the  inhabitants  of  West  Florida,  including  his  gen- 
eral orders  to  the  army.  The  following  extract  exhibits  the 
tenor  of  that  document,*  viz. : 

"  Headquarters,  Division  of  the  South,  ) 
"  Pensacola,  May  2pth,  1818.       J 

"  Major-general  Andrew  Jackson  has  found  it  necessary  to 
take  possession  of  Pensacola.  He  has  not  been  prompted  to 
this  measure  from  a  wish  to  extend  the  territorial  limits  of  the 


Vol.  I.— G 


See  Mississippi  State  Gazette,  June  30th,  1818. 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


^Tt^ 


[book  I. 


United  States,  or  from  any  unfriendly  feeling  on  the  part  of  the 
American  Republic  to  the  Spanish  government.  The  Semi- 
nole Indians,  inhabiting  the  territories  of  Spain,  have,  for  more 
than  two  years  past,  visited  our  frontier  settlers  with  all  the 
horrors  of  savage  massacre :  helpless  women  have  been  butch- 
ered, and  the  cradle  stained  with  the  blood  of  innocence. 
These  atrocities,  it  was  expected,  would  have  early  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  Spanish  government,  and  that,  faithful  to 
existing  treaties,  speedy  measures  would  have  been  adopted 
for  their  suppression. 

"  The  obligation  to  restrain  them  was  acknowledged ;  but 
weakness  was  alleged,  with  a  concession  that,  so  far  from  be- 
ing able  to  control,  the  Spanish  authorities  were  often  com- 
pelled, from  policy  or  necessity,  to  issue  munitions  of  war  to 
these  savages,  thus  enabling,  if  not  exciting,  them  to  raise  the 
tomahawk  against  us.  The  immutable  laws  of  self-defense, 
therefore,  compelled  the  American  government  to  take  pos- 
session of  those  parts  of  the  Floridas  in  which  the  Spanish  au- 
thority could  not  be  maintained.  Pensacola  was  found  in  this 
situation,  and  will  be  held  until  Spain  can  furnish  military 
strength  sufficient  to  enforce  existing  treaties.  Spanish  sub- 
jects will  be  respected ;  Spanish  laws  will  govern  in  all  cases 
affecting  property  and  person ;  a  free  toleration  to  all  religions 
guarantied,  and  trade  alike  free  to  all  nations." 

Thus  all  West  Florida  was  virtually  occupied  by  the  Amer- 
ican troops ;  and  detachments  under  Captains  Girt  and  Bowles 
Were  sent  to  scour  the  country,  from  the  Perdido  on  the  west 
to  the  Uche  and  Holmes's  Old  Fields  on  the  Chactahatchy. 
St.  Augustine  had  likewise  been  occupied  by  General  Gaines, 
acting  under  the  orders  of  General  Jackson. 

Having  thus  concluded  the  Seminole  war.  General  Jackson 
disposed  of  the  regular  troops,  discharged  the  friendly  Creeks, 
and  marched  the  Tennessee  volunteers  home.  Thus  termin- 
ated the  Seminole  war,  leaving  all  Florida  in  the  occupancy 
of  the  United  States. 

Such  was  the  celerity  and  decision  of  all  General  Jackson's 
movements.  As  a  forcible  writer  on  the  Seminole  war,  in  a 
Tennessee  paper  of  that  year,  observes,  "General  Jackson  is 
a  more  extraordinary  person  than  has  ever  appeared  in  our 
history.  Nature  has  seldom  endowed  man  with  a  mind  so 
powerful  and  comprehensive,  or  with  a  body  better  formed 


! 


)0K  I. 


A.D.  1818.] 


VALLEY    or   THE    MISBISSirPI. 


00 


of  the 
Semi- 
more 
ill  the 
butch- 
cence. 
racted 
hful  to 
dopted 

d ;  but 
om  be- 
n  com- 
war  to 
lise  the 
lefense, 
ke  pos- 
nish  au- 
i  in  this 
military 
ish  sub- 
ill  cases 
eligions 

Amer- 

3owles 

16  west 

atchy. 

Gaines, 


in 


ackson 

Creeks, 

termin- 

cupancy 

ackson's 
ar,  in  a 
ckson  is 
i  in  our 
mind  so 
formed 


for  activity,  or  capable  of  enduring  greater  privations,  fatigue, 
and  hardships.  She  has  been  equally  kind  to  him  in  all  the  qual- 
ities of  his  heart.  General  Jackson  has  no  ambition  but  for  the 
good  of  his  country :  it  occupies  the  whole  of  his  views,  to  the 
exclusion  of  all  selfish  or  ignoble  considerations.  Cradled  in 
the  war  of  the  Revolution,  nurtured  amid  the  conflicts  which 
subsequently  took  place  between  the  Cherokees  and  the  Ten» 
nesseeans,  being  always  among  a  people  who  regard  the  appli- 
cation of  force,  not  as  the  ultima  ratio  regum,  but  as  the  first 
resort  of  individuals  who  look  upon  courage  as  the  greatest  of 
human  attributes,  his  character,  on  this  stormy  ocean,  has  ac- 
quired an  extraordinary  cast  of  vigor,  with  a  conviction  that 
we  should  never  despair  of  effecting  whatever  is  within  the 
power  of  man  to  accomplish ;  and  that  courage,  activity,  and 
perseverance  can  overcome  obstacles  which,  to  ordinary  minds, 
appear  insuperable.  In  society,  he  is  kind,  frank,  unaffected, 
and  hospitable ;  endowed  with  much  natural  grace  and  polite- 
ness, without  the  mechanical  gentility  and  artificial  polish  found 
in  fashionable  life."* 

The  course  of  General  Jackson  in  the  occupancy  of  Florida 
was  severely  attacked  in  Congress  by  a  party  of  great  zeal 
and  activity,  at  the  head  of  which  was  Henry  Clay,  then  speak- 
er of  the  House  of  Representatives ;  but  the  general  was  fully 
sustained  by  the  president  and  his  cabinet,  and  by  an  over- 
whelming majority  in  Congress.  The  people,  from  one  end 
of  the  United  States  to  the  other,  spoke  out,  and,  through  the 
State  Legislatures  and  public  meetings,  vindicated  the  decisive 
and  prompt  measures  adopted  by  the  defender  of  the  South. 

[A.D.  1819.]  While  these  things  were  transpiring  on  the 
southern  frontier,  the  Federal  government  of  the  United  States, 
well  assured  that  the  possession  of  the  whole  of  the  Floridas 
was  indispensable  to  the  peace  and  security  of  the  Southern 
States,  had  been  pressing  an  urgent  negotiation  for  the  pur- 
chase of  the  whole  province  from  Spain.  The  possession  had 
been  restored  to  Spain,  but  the  negotiation  was  continued  with 
unremitting  perseverance  and  with  increasing  firmness  on  the 
part  of  the  American  government,  until  the  22d  of  February, 
1819,  when  a  formal  treaty  of  cession  was  signed  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States  by  John  Quincy  Adams,  secretary  of 
State,  and  on  the  part  of  the  Spanish  crown  by  Don  Onis,  res- 

*  See  MiMiBiippi  State  (Gazette,  September  9th,  1818. 


•     I  I    >    4 


100 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


ident  Spanish  minister  near  the  American  government.  This 
treaty  was  rejected  by  the  Spanish  Cortes  at  their  following 
session,  but  was  subsequently  ratified  on  the  24th  of  October, 
1820.  On  the  part  of  the  American  government,  it  was  con- 
firmed by  the  Senate  on  the  22d  day  of  February,  1821. 

The  treaty  stipulated,  on  the  part  of  Spain,  for  and  in  con- 
sideration pi  five  millions  of  dollars,  paid  by  the  United  States 
to  their  citizens,  as  an  indemnity  due  from  Spain  for  spoliations 
on  American  commerce,  to  cede  to  the  United  States  all  the 
Floridas,  with  the  islands  adjacent,  from  the  mouth  of  the  St. 
Mary's  River  on  the  Atlantic  coast  to  the  Perdido  Bay  on  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  Under  cover  of  this  treaty,  for  the  acquisi- 
tion of  Florida  on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  the  great 
province  of  Louisiana  was  dismembered,  and  the  important  and 
extensive  region  of  Texas  was  transferred  to  the  Spanish 
crown.  The  western  limit  of  Louisiana,  on  the  Gulf  of  Mex- 
ico, was  removed  from  the  Rio  Bravo  del  Norte,  eastward 
five  hundred  miles,  to  the  Sabine,  without  any  consideration 
received  on  the  part  of  the  United  States  for  a  territory  three 
times  as  extensive  as  the  Floridas,  and  infinitely  more  valuable. 

[A.D.  1821.]  In  this  treaty.  President  Monroe,  reluctantly 
yielding  to  the  prejudices  and  interests  of  Northern  politicians, 
consented  to  abandon  for  a  time  the  extensive  and  fertile  coun- 
try west  of  the  Sabine,  in  order  to  conciliate  the  approbation  of 
the  New  Englr^nd  States*  to  the  annexation  of  Florida,  well 

*  From  the  earliest  period  of  the  Western  settlements,  after  the  adoption  of  the  Fed- 
eral Constitution  in  1789,  the  Jealodsy  of  New  England,  and  especially  of  Massachusetts, 
was  awakened  to  the  danger  of  losing  her  ascendency  in  the  national  government,  and 
in  the  commercial  importance  of  the  country.  With  this  view  predominant,  they  have 
never  failed,  when  opportunity  offered,  to  embarrass  the  West  in  the  national  councils, 
and  by  all  means  to  retard  and  restrict  the  extension  of  its  settlements.  The  same  nar- 
row, interested  policy  induced  them  Ui  throw  every  obstacle  in  the  way,  to  prevent  the 
acquisition  of  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi,  previous  to  the  treaty  of  Madrid 
and  subsequently.  The  same  interested  policy  prompted  them  to  oppose,  with  great 
violence,  the  purchase  of  Louisiana,  "  lest,"  as  was  unblushingly  said,  "  our  New  Eng- 
land lands  become  a  desert,  from  the  contagion  of  emigration ;"  and  because  "  the  poli- 
ticians of  the  Northeastern  States  were  anxious  to  give  such  a  shape  to  the  Union  as 
would  secure  the  dominion  over  it  to  its  Eastern  section." — See  Boston  Centinel,  Nov. 
12, 1803.— See,  also,  Mr.  Monroe's  letter  to  Mr.  Jefferson  in  1820 

When  Louisiana  was  finally  acquired  in  1803,  these  states,  and  Massachusetts  es- 
pecially, threatened  to  dissolve  the  Union  and  recede ;  in  1814  they  desired  to  surren- 
der to  Great  Britain  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  River,  and  virtually  all  beyond. 
The  same  policy  predominated  in  the  treaty  of  1819,  in  which,  to  conciliate  the  New 
England  States,  upon  the  acquisition  of  Florida,  three  times  as  much  Western  territory 
was  abandoned  without  equivalent  or  necessity.  Now  they  acquiesced  in  being  able 
to  detach  all  beyond  the  Sabine.  Again,  in  1845,  Massachusetts,  through  her  Legisla- 
ture, urged  the  most  violent  oppoition  to  the  annexation  of  Texas,  threatening  to  ae- 


A.D.   1821.]  VAl.i  HY   f>»r   THF 


>fllltlISflIPPI. 


K,4 


assured  in  his  own  mind  that  Tt  ^as  mus<  'n^tvitnbly  come  nut 
the  Union  whenever  the  advance  of  popi.  »n  sho^  .  detnuu,. 
its  use.  To  insure  the  respectful  acquic^  ace  of  tl  .  American 
people,  the  memory  of  "  the  Father  of  hih  auntry"  vvas  invoked 
at  the  signing  and  final  ratification  of  the  treaty.  And,  as  if  still 
further  to  shield  himself  from  popular  displeasure,  the  name  of 
Jackson  was  to  be  identified  with  the  acquisition  of  Florida,  as 
its  first  governor  and  military  commandant.  But  the  stability 
of  the  Union  increases  with  its  extension  ;  and  a  quarter  of  a 
century  had  scarcely  elapsed  when  the  American  Union,  hav- 
ing  doubled  its  population,  found  its  stability  unshaken,  and  the 
whole  of  Texas  and  Florida  embraced. 

General  Jackson,  "  acquiescing  for  the  present"  in  the  loss 
of  Texas  for  the  acquisition  of  Florida,  repaired  to  his  post ; 
and  on  the  17th  of  June,  1821,  he  took  possession  of  the  same 
in  the  name  of  the  United  States,  by  the  exchange  of  flags,  and 
the  usual  formalities. 

General  Jackson  immediately  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his 
office,  as  civil  and  military  commandant  and  governor  of  Flor- 
ida, invested  by  Congress  with  ample  powers,  legislative,  ju- 
dicial, and  executive.* 

From  Pensacola,  his  headquarters,  he  issued  several  procla- 
mations and  ordinances  regulating  the  administration  of  public 
justice.  The  territory  was  divided  into  two  judicial  districts, 
which  continued  to  be  known  as  East  and  West  Florida,  sep- 
arated by  the  Suwanee  River  instead  of  the  former  boundary 
of  the  Appalachicola  River.  A  court,  with  civil  and  criminal 
jurisdiction,  was  established  in  each.f 

By  the  treaty  the  Spanish  population  were  allowed  a  reas- 
onable time  to  dispose  of  their  estates  and  personal  property 
previous  to  their  departure,  provided  they  did  not  wish  to  re- 
main under  the  American  government. 

The  American  population  began  to  advance  rapidly  into 
Florida,  by  sea  from  various  portions  of  the  Union,  and  by  land 
from  Georgia,  Alabama,  Mississippi,  and  from  Tennessee.  The 
State  of  Tennessee  had  long  desired  the  expulsion  of  the  Span- 
iards from  Florida ;  hence  the  Tennessee  volunteers  had  cheer- 
fully entered  the  campaign  under  General  Jackson,  anxious  to 


cede  from  the  Union,  and  declaring  "  that  the  re-annexation  of  Texas  was  a  virtual 
diasolntion  of  the  Union." 
•  Williams's  Florida,  p.  207.  t  Idem,  p.  208. 


» 


102 


HISTORY    or    TilR 


[book  I. 


witness  and  aid  in  the  humiliation  of  the  perfidious  Spaniards. 
They  now  were  among  the  first  to  press  in  and  occupy  the 
country  wrested  from  them.  Before  the  close  of  the  year  1822, 
the  greater  portion  of  the  Spanish  population  had  retired  to 
Havana  and  Mexico. 

Early  in  his  administration  of  the  government  of  Florida, 
Governor  Jackson  came  into  collision  with  the  Spanish  author- 
ities still  remaining  in  the  country.  Apprehending  a  renewal 
of  the  evasions  and  artifices  practiced  by  the  Spanish  authori- 
ties  relative  to  the  surrender  of  the  Natchez  District  in  1708, 
and  relative  to  the  factitious  land-titles  of  Louisiana,  Governor 
Jackson  determined,  by  prompt  measures,  to  suppress  any 
such  attempt.  Having  been  informed  that  the  ex-governor, 
Calleava,  was  about  to  transmit  to  Havana  certain  documents 
and  archives  pertaining  to  land-titles,  in  violation  of  the  second 
article  of  the  treaty  of  cession,  he  made  a  peremptory  demand 
for  their  surrender,  as  the  property  of  the  United  States.  The 
ex-governor  refusing  to  obey  the  demand.  Governor  Jackson 
issued  an  order  for  his  arrest  and  confinement  in  the  cala- 
boose, and  the  documents  were  seized  and  taken  from  his 
house,  where  they  had  been  boxed  up  for  shipment.  The  ex- 
governor  was  then  released. 

Castilian  pride  was  touched,  and  several  Spanish  oflicers,  re- 
senting the  indignity  to  their  late  governor,  sent  to  Governor 
Jackson  a  strong  remonstrance  against  his  procedure.  The 
governor,  considering  it  an  unwarrantable  interference  with 
his  authority,  and  highly  offensive  in  language,  issued  an  order 
for  their  immediate  departure  from  the  country,  on  pain  of  im- 
prisonment. Twelve  of  them  were  accordingly  compelled  to 
sail  for  Havana,  with  but  little  time  allowed  for  settling  up 
their  affairs  and  disposing  of  their  property.* 

[A.D.  1822.]  General  Jackson  continued  to  administer  the 
government,  clothed  with  the  general  powers  of  the  Spanish 
governors,  until  the  following  year,  when  the  American  popu- 
lation having  increased  to  five  thousand  males,  the  first  grade 
of  territorial  government,  under  the  ordinance  of  1787,  was 
organized. 

Under  the  new  organization,  William  P.  Duval  was  appoint- 
ed governor,  with  a  superior  court  in  each  district.  A  legis- 
lative council  was  organized,  and  held  its  first  session  in  June, 

*  Williams'*  Florida,  p.  808.       •       •-.•._.-.     r       .. 


A.D.  1886.] 


VALLEY    or   THE    MIH8lt«SII>PI. 


103 


ippoint- 
legis- 
in  June, 


1622.  At  this  session  each  district  was  divided  into  two 
counties,  viz.,  West  Florida  into  the  counties  of  Escanihia  ond 
Jackson,  and  East  Floridn  into  the  counties  of  St.  John'H  and 
Duviil. 

[A.D.  1824.]  Two  yeors  afterward  the  present  site  of  Tal- 
lahassee WU8  selected  and  laid  off  as  the  permanent  seat  of  the 
territorial  government.  The  counties  of  Monroe  and  Gadsden 
were  organized  this  year,  and  four  other  counties  were  laid  off 
for  subsequent  organization,  viz.,  the  counties  of  Leon  and 
Walton  in  West  Florida,  and  Alachua  and  Nassau  in  East 
Florida. 

[A.D.  1825.]  The  American  population  continued  to  in- 
crease in  the  principal  settlements,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Pen- 
sacola,  St.  Mark's,  and  St.  Augustine,  until  the  territory  became 
entitled  to  the  second  grade  of  territorial  government,  under 
the  ordinance  of  1787.  The  territory  was  divided  into  thirteen 
election  districts,  and  the  people  proceeded  to  elect  their  legis- 
lative assembly,  which,  having  convened  soon  afterward,  elect- 
ed their  first  delegate  to  Congress. 

Such  had  been  the  mass  of  emigrants  and  unacclimated  per- 
sons into  St.  Augustine  in  1821,  that  a  mild  epidemic  yellow- 
fever  was  generated  among  the  crowded  population.  The 
same  thing  occurred  at  Pensacola  the  following  year.  But  it 
wa's  not  until  the  year  1825  that  Pensacola  received  a  dense 
population  of  unacclimated  emigrants,  when  a  most  destruc- 
tive epidemic  yellow  fever  was  generated,  and  swept  off  great 
numbers  of  the  crowded  population. 

The  native  tribes  of  Indians  still  occupied  the  greater  por- 
tion of  the  country,  while  the  white  settlements  were  concen- 
trated in  the  vicinities  of  Pensacola,  St.  Mark's,  Tallahassee, 
and  St.  Augustine.  On  the  eighteenth  of  September,  1823, 
the  Seminoles  had,  by  the  treaty  of  Moultrie  Creek,  ceded  a 
large  portion  of  lands  in  Middle  Florida,  and  had  agreed  to  re- 
tire south  and  east,  upon  the  lands  lying  east  of  the  Suwanee, 
and  upon  the  Ocklawaha  and  Withlacoochy  Rivers,  prepara- 
tory to  their  final  emigration  from  the  territory.  Thus  the 
middle  region  of  Florida  gradually  became  open  to  the  exten- 
sion of  the  white  settlements,  and  the  Indians  were  mostly  re- 
moved in  the  winter  of  1824,  excepting  a  few  reservations  to 
particular  chiefs.*   . 

*  See  Williams's  Florida,  p.  SH. 


I 


104 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  I. 


[A.D.  1835.]  The  Mickasukie  Indians  had  always  been 
averse  to  leaving  Middle  Florida,  and  they  had  opposed  the 
treaty  of  Moultrie  Creek.  After  their  removal  in  1824,  they 
still  evinced  great  dissatisfaction,  which  induced  the  Federal 
government  to  extend  the  limits  assigned  them  on  the  north, 
and  to  furnish  them  additional  supplies,  besides  those  al- 
ready stipulated.  Still  they  continued  dissatisfied,  and  many 
of  them,  in  1835-6,  became  disposed  to  emigrate  west  of  the 
Mississippi.  Difficulties  began  to  spring  up  between  them  and 
the  white  settlements,  and  the  Indians,  in  revenge,  began  to 
commit  depredations  and  murders  upon  the  exposed  frontiers. 
They  began  to  kill  or  expel  the  agents  of  the  army,  the  sur- 
veyors of  the  government,  and  the  mail-carriers,  and  others 
who  had  frequented  their  country. 

At  length  it  was  deemed  prudent  to  station  a  strong  military 
force  within  the  Indian  territory,  to  restrain  the  violence  of  the 
discontented.  Fourteen  companies  of  regular  troops  were  or- 
dered to  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  march  from  different 
posts  to  Florida  during  the  winter  of  1835-6. 

Most  of  these  detachments,  entering  the  country  at  different 
points,  were  greatly  annoyed  in  their  advance  by  bodies  of  In- 
dians, who  determined  to  dispute  the  passage  of  the  streams 
and  rivers.  Hence  several  severe  skirmishes  occurred  before 
they  reached  the  points  of  their  destination. 

The  most  terrible  of  these  ambuscades  was  that  encounter- 
ed by  the  ill-fated  but  brave  detachment  under  Major  Dade, 
which  was  totally  cut  off  by  the  savages.  Major  Dade,  on  the 
24th  of  December,  1835,  marched  from  Tampa  Bay  with  a 
detachment  of  three  companies,  comprising  one  hundred  and 
thirty-nine  men,  for  Fort  King.*  On  the  route  they  encoun- 
tered much  difficulty,  from  the  heavy  roads,  in  transporting 
their  stores,  and  one  piece  of  artillery.  On  the  28th  they  had 
reached  an  open  pine  country,  six  miles  northeast  of  the  With- 
lacoochy  River.  Suddenly,  about  mid-day,  they  were  attack- 
ed on  all  sides  with  a  continuous  volley  of  small  arms,  ac- 
companred  by  horrid  yells,  from  an  unseen  enemy  in  the  high 
grass ;  and  so  terrible  was  the  first  discharge,  that  Major  Dade 
was  killed,  and  nearly  half  his  detachment  disabled.  The 
remainder,  under  Lieutenant  Bassinger,  sheltered  themselves 
behind  trees,  while  five  or  six  discharges  of  canister  from  the 

*  WilUams'B  Florida,  y.  917,  2XU. 


A.D.  1835.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


105 


six  pounder  caused  the  Indians  to  disperse  and  retire.  On  their 
retreat,  Captain  Gardiner  immediately  commenced  the  erection 
of  a  triangular  breast-work,  by  cutting  down  pine  trees.  In 
three  quarters  of  an  hour  the  savages  returned  in  great  num- 
bers and  with  horrid  yells.  A  cross-fire  was  immediately  open- 
ed upon  the  unfinished  breast-work  with  dreadful  execution. 
Lieutenant  Bassinger  continued  to  fire  his  piece  until  all  his  ar- 
tillerists were  cut  down  by  the  enemy's  fire,  and  until  he  fell 
wounded  himself.  Every  man  able  to  raise  a  gun  continued 
to  defend  the  spot  after  they  were  wounded. 

At  length  the  last  man  fell,  when  the  savages  rushed  into  the 
inclosure.  Here,  supposing  all  were  dead,  a  large  Indian  made 
a  speech  to  the  warriors,  who  immediately  proceeded  to  strip 
the  arms  and  accoutrements  from  the  soldiers,  without  any  in- 
dignity to  their  bodies,  and  then  retired.  Thus  in  two  hours 
this  fine  detachment  of  brave  men  had  been  annihilated. 

Soon  afterward,  fifty  negroes  on  horseback  rode  up  to  the 
breast-work,  tied  their  horses,  and  began  the  horrid  butchery. 
Did  any  man  on  the  ground  show  signs  of  life,  it  was  only  to 
receive  the  negro's  tomahawk  into  his  brains,  or  to  be  stabbed 
to  death  with  their  knives,  or  otherwise  to  be  cut  and  mutila- 
ted by  the  thick-lipped  savages,  amid  demoniac  yells  and  hor- 
rid blasphemies.  Lieutenant  Bassinger,  still  alive,  sprung  to 
his  knees  and  begged  his  life  of  the  negro  savages ;  but  they 
mocked  his  prayers,  and  mangled  his  body  with  their  hatchets 
until  death  relieved  him  from  their  tortures. 

After  stripping  the  dead,  the  negroes  dragged  the  field-piece 
to  a  neighboring  pond,  in  which  they  concealed  it ;  after  which 
they  shot  the  oxen,  and  burned  the  wagon  and  gun-carriage. 

Two  men,  Clarke  and  Decouy,  lay  concealed  among  the 
dead  bodies  until  night,  when  they  crawled  out  and  made  their 
way  toward  Tampa  Bay.*  Next  day  Decouy  was  discover- 
ed and  shot  by  an  Indian ;  Clarke  concealed  himself  in  the 
bushes,  and  proceeded  to  Tampa  next  day,  where  he  speedily 
recovered  of  his  wounds.  Another  soldier,  named  Thomas, 
after  lying  half  suffocated  under  the  dead  bodies  all  night,  re- 
covered, and  finally  succeeded  in  reaching  the  fort  at  Tampa 
Bay  in  safety. 

Thus  terminated  this  disastrous  battle,  in  which  only  two 

*  WiUiams's  Florida,  p.  219. 


106 


HISTonY    OF    THE 


[book  I. 


i 


f 


men  survived  to  tell  the  melancholy  story  of  this  detachment 
of  as  brave  men  as  ever  suflered  under  savage  cruelty. 

A  free  negro,  named  Lewis,  formerly  the  property  of  Gen- 
eral Clinch,  had  been  the  guide  of  Major  Dade,  and  it  was 
through  his  treachery  that  this  fatal  ambuscade  succeeded.  He 
fled  to  the  Indians  upon  the  first  attack.  The  number  of  In- 
dians engaged  in  this  tragedy  is  unknovt^n ;  but  probably  there 
were  not  less  than  three  hundred,  besides  fifty  negroes.  They 
were  commanded  by  Jumper  and  Micanopy.  The  oflicers 
slain  in  this  massacre  were  Major  Dade,  Captain  Frazier, 
Captain  Gardiner,  Lieutenant  Bassinger,  Lieutenant  Mudge, 
Lieutenant  Keys,  Lieutenant  Henderson,  and  Doctor  Catiin. 

On  the  same  day  that  Major  Dade  was  cut  ofl*,  the  Seminole 
chief,  Powell,  with  twenty  men,  advanced  to  Fort  King,  and, 
within  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards  of  the  pickets,  killed  the 
suttler  to  the  fort,  Erastus  llodgers,  and  a  party  of  friends, 
while  at  dinner.  Among  those  slain  with  Rodgers  were  Suggs, 
Hitzler,  General  Wiley  Thompson,  the  Indian  agent,  and  Lieu- 
tenant Constantino  Smith.  Four  others  escaped.  The  body 
of  General  Thompson  was  pierced  by  fifteen  balls,  and  that  of 
Rodgers  by  sixteen,  and  their  bodies  were  horribly  mangled 
and  mutilated  afterward. 

This  was  the  commencement  of  the  noted  "  Florida  War," 
which  cost  the  government  much  time  and  money  before  the 
savages  were  finally  all  taken  and  transported  to  their  western 
homes,  after  many  severe  engagements,  skirmishes,  and  in- 
dividual rencounters.  The  government  determined  to  press 
the  war  until  the  whole  race  should  be  removed  or  extermi- 
nated from  Florida.  The  militia  of  Florida  and  Georgia  were 
immediately  called  into  service  to  protect  the  frontier  settle- 
ments. 

[A.D.  1836.]  From  this  time  the  Federal  government  urged 
the  war  with  vigor ;  the  Indians  were  pursued  and  hunted  from 
every  point  of  the  peninsula,  and  captured  by  families,  by 
masses,  and  by  surrender,  and  in  every  possible  manner,  during 
the  next  four  years.  Those  who  were  captured  or  who  sur- 
rendered were  kept  securely  at  the  different  posts,  and  sent  by 
steam-boat  loads  under  armed  guards  to  their  destination  in  the 
territory  appropriated  for  the  Indian  tribes  in  the  Far  West, 
north  of  Red  River.  .  .  . 

[A.D.  1839.]     The  Florida  war  was  prosecuted  with  varied 


A.D.  1840.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


107 


success,  and  chiefly  south  of  the  Suwanee  River,  until  the  year 
1831),  when  it  was  terminated  by  the  capture  or  surrender  of 
the  last  remnant  of  the  hostile  tribes.  During  this  period,  the 
commanders  of  the  United  States  forces  had  captured  or  re- 
ceived the  voluntary  surrender  of  warriors  and  families  to  the 
number  of  three  thousand  eight  hundred  and  thirty  souls,  which 
were  provided  with  all  the  necessaries  and  comforts  of  savage 
life,  until  they  were  finally  removed  by  agents  of  the  United 
States  to  the  Indian  territory  west  of  the  State  of  Arkansas. 

[A.D.  1840.]  From  this  time  the  occupancy  of  Florida  by 
every  portion  of  the  Creek  and  Seminole  Indians  terminated, 
and  the  whole  country  was  in  the  undisputed  possession  of  the 
United  States,  and  free  to  the  advance  of  the  white  population, 
and  the  extension  of  settlements  into  the  former  Indian  territory. 

In  1839  the  population  had  gradually  increased  under  the 
territorial  form  of  government,  until  the  entire  number,  inclu- 
ding slaves,  amounted  to  nearly  fifty  thousand  souls.  The  ter- 
ritorial jurisdiction  had  been  extended  over  the  whole  terri- 
tory, which  had  been  divided  into  twenty  organized  counties, 
which  were  comprised  in  five  judicial  districts  of  the  Federal 
court.* 

The  increase  of  population  during  the  last  ten  years  had 
been  rapid,  notwithstanding  the  dangers  from  Indian  hostili- 
ties. The  census  of  1830  gave  the  entire  population,  exclu- 
sive of  Indians,  at  34,723  souls ;  and  that  of  1840  gave  an 
aggregate  of  54,477  souls,  including  26,500  slaves  and  free 
negroes,  the  Indian  tribes  having  been  entirely  removed. 

Meantime  the  people  of  Florida  had  been  desirous  of  es- 
tablishing a  state  government,  preparatory  to  admission  into 
the  Federal  Union  as  an  independent  state.  The  territorial 
Legislature  of  1838,  representing  the  wishes  of  the  people,  had 
memorialized  Congress  for  authority  to  form  a  state  constitu- 
tion. An  act  of  Congress  authorized  the  election  of  a  conven- 
tion for  that  purpose.  On  the  11th  of  January,  1839,  the  con- 
vention at  Tallahassee  adopted  a  constitution  for  the  organi- 
zation of  a  state  government,  which  was  duly  submitted  to  the 
consideration  of  Congress.  The  general  feature  of  this  con- 
stitution was  similar  in  its  provisions  to  those  of  the  slave-hold- 
ing states,  and,  of  bourse,  legalized  the  bondage  of  the  negro 
race  within  the  limits  of  the  proposed  new  state.    In  this  re- 

'  .    *  See  American  Almanac  for  1844,  p.  291. 


108 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  I. 


1   !l 


spect  the  constitution  for  Florida  was  more  rigid  than  many 
other  slave-holding  states,  prohibiting  forever  the  emancipa- 
tion of  any  negro  slave  in  the  state. 

But  the  people  of  Florida  were  not  permitted  so  soon  to  as- 
sume state  sovereignty.  There  were  features  in  the  constitu- 
tion designed  to  protect  Southern  rights  and  Southern  inter- 
ests, which  necessarily  encountered  a  strong  opposition  from 
Northern  interests  and  feelings.  The  fact  of  the  proposed  new 
state  being  a  South  jm  one,  and  a  slave-holding  one  in  its  most 
rigid  sense,  created  in  the  national  Legislature  a  strong  op- 
position to  its  admission  into  the  Union  as  an  independent  state 
with  less  than  thirty  thousand  free  whites.  Hence,  Northern 
influences  and  prejudices  were  strongly  arrayed  against  the 
measure ;  and  they  were  sufficiently  powerful  to  defeat  the 
admission  of  the  new  state  for  nearly  five  years  after  it  was 
constitutionally  and  legally  entitled  to  assume  the  rank  of  an 
independent  state. 

[A.D.  1845.]  During  this  time,  the  territorial  government 
had  continued  in  operation  under  the  wise  and  judicious  ad- 
ministration of  Governor  Richard  C.  Call,  and  his  successor, 
Governor  John  Branch.  In  1845,  the  population  had  greatly 
increased  its  numbers,  so  as  to  remove  the  opposition  created 
by  want  of  fiee  white  citizens ;  and  a  bill  for  the  admission  of 
"  Iowa,"  a  northern  free  state,  coming  before  Congress,  the 
friends  of  Florida  rallied,  and,  by  including  Florida  with 
Iowa  in  the  same  bill,  succeeded  in  securing  the  passage  of 
a  joint  resolution  which  made  Florida  an  independent  state. 
The  act  for  the  admission  o^  both  Iowa  and  Florida  as  inde- 
pendent states  was  approved  March  the  3d,  1845.*  The  Leg- 
islature of  Florida  accepted  the  act  of  Congress,  with  its  con- 
ditions, and  immediately  Florida  was  an  "  independent  state," 
upon  an  equal  footing  with  the  original  states. 

The  limits  and  boundaries  of  Florida  remain  the  same  that 
were  recognized  while  it  was  a  province  of  Spain,  and  with 
which  it  was  ceded  to  the  United  States  in  1819. 

Meantime  Iowa  remained  without  the  pale  of  the  Union, 
under  the  territorial  form  of  government.  The  limits  pre- 
scribed in  her  constitution  having  been  restricted  by  Congress, 
the  Legislature  declined  to  accept  the  terms  of  admission,  and 
submitted  the  decision  to  the  vote  of  the  people.    The  general 

*  See  Acts  of  second  session  of  the  28th  Congress. 


A.D.  1845.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


109 


election  held  soon  afterward  confirmed  the  rejection  of  the 
terms  by  a  large  niajority  of  the  votes. 

Florida  became  an  independent  state  just  twenty-four  years 
after  it  became  a  territory  of  the  United  States.  The  same 
year  witnessed  the  admission  of  Texas  as  an  independent  state 
of  the  American  Union,  and  extending  the  Federal  jurisdiction 
to  the  Rio  del  Norte  ;  while  Iowa,  in  the  extreme  north,  was 
yet  a  territorial  dependence.  Strange  that  Texas,  which  was 
exchanged  for  Florida  in  1819,  should  enter  the  Union  simul- 
taneously with  it  in  1845  as  an  independent  state.* 

The  first  general  assembly  of  the  State  of  Florida  was  con- 
vened at  Tallahassee  on  the  23d  of  June,  when  James  A. 
Berthelet,  of  Leon  county,  was  unanimously  elected  president 
of  the  Senate,  and  Hugh  Archer,  of  the  same  county,  was  also 
unanimously  elected  speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives ; 
Thomas  F.  King  was  clerk  of  the  Senate,  and  M.  D.  Papy, 
chief  clerk  of  the  Lower  House.  Both  houses,  soon  after  their 
organization,  adopted  resolutions  in  honor  of  the  memory,  and 
commemorating  the  death,  of  its  first  American  governor.  Gen- 
eral Andrew  Jackson. 

The  first  executive  of  the  state,  Governor  Mosely,  was  in- 
stalled into  office  on  the  25th  of  June,  with  all  the  solemnity  of 
civic  honors.  His  inaugural  was  strongly  characterized  by 
its  pure  Republican  principles ;  while  a  banner  presented  and 
borne  by  the  citizens  as  a  temporary  state  flag,  bearing  the 
orange  stripe  of  Florida,  responded  to  the  sentiment  in  the  in- 
scription, "  Let  us  alone." t 

The  first  session  of  the  General  Assembly  continued  until  the 
26th  of  July ;  no  attempt  at  legislation  was  made  further  than 
what  was  necessary  to  put  the  machinery  of  state  government 
in  operation.  J 

*  Bee  book  v.,  chap,  xvii.,  "  Rc-aunezation  of  Texas." 

t  Weekly  Union,  No.  10,  p.  148.  t  Idem,  Aagnst  S3d,  1845. 


^^% 


p 


!     4 


BOOK    II. 

FRANCE  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPL 


CHAPTER  I. 

ADVANCE   OP   THE   FRENCH    UPON   THE  ST.  LAWRENCE,  AND    DISCOV- 
ERY   OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. A.D.   1608  TO   1673. 

Argument.— Pint  Attempt  of  French  Colonization  in  Canada.— Firit  successful  Settle- 
ment by  Champlain  in  1608.— His  Explorations  on  the  Bt.  Lawrence  and  Lakes. — 
Indian  Alliances  against  the  Iroquois. — Advance  of  Catholic  Missionaries. — Hostili- 
ties of  the  Iroquois. — Fathers  Brcbenf  and  Daniel  visit  Sa<)lt  St.  Mary  in  1634. — 
Character  of  Catholic  Missionaries  in  Canada. — Sufferings  of  Raymbault  among  the 

.  Iroquois  in  1642. — Of  Father  Bressoni  in  1643. — The  Missionaries  sustain  the  Colo- 
nies.— Death  of  Fatlicr  Jougcs  among  the  Iroquois  in  1646. — Others  suffer  Martyr^ 
dom  in  the  same  Field. — Jesuits  and  Monks  flock  to  Canada  in  1650  for  the  Mission- 
ary Field. — Lo  Moyne  among  the  Mohawks  in  1656. — Chaumonot  and  Dablou  among 
the  Onoudagas. — Uenu  Mesnard  among  the  Cajiigas. — Missionaries  killed  and  ex- 
pelled by  the  Iroquois. — Montreal  a  Bishop's  See  in  1656. — Mesnard  repairs  to 
St.  Mary's  and  Qreen  Bay. — Dies  in  the  Forest  alone. — Canada  a  lloyal  Province 
in  1665. — Military  Protection  of  Settlements. — Father  Allouez  among  the  Chippe- 
was  at  St.  Mary's. — Learns  the  Existence  of  the  Mississippi  in  1667. — Dablon  and 
Marquette  repair  to  St.  Mary's  in  1668. — Military  Outposts  of  New  France  in  1670. 

.  — Missions  in  the  Far  West. — Marquette  conceives  the  Design  of  discovering  the 
Mississippi. — Plans  his  Voyage  of  Discovery  in  1672. — M.  Talon  patronizes  the  Enter- 
prise.— Marquette  and  Jotict  conduct  the  Exploration  in  1673. — They  proceed  by  Way 
of  Qrecn  Bay  and  Fox  River  to  the  Wisconsin. — Discovery  of  the  Mississippi,  Juno 
17th,  1673.— Explore  the  Great  River  1100  Miles.— They  return  by  the  Illinois  River 
to  Chicago  Creek. — Martiuette  returns  to  his  Mission,  and  Jolict  to  Quebec. — Joy  in 
Canada  at  the  Discovery. — Native  Tribes  known  to  the  early  Explorers  of  Illinois  and 
Louisiana :  Algouijuin  Tribes ;  Shawanese ;  Miamis ;  Illinois ;  Potawatauiies  ;  Otta- 
was ;  Menomonies ;  Cliippewas  ;  Sioux  ;  Sauks  and  Foxes  ;  Chickasas ;  Natchez  ; 
Choctas. 

As  early  as  the  year  1535,  before  De  Soto  arrived  in  Flor- 
ida, the  French  had  made  several  unsuccessful  attempts  to 
form  settlements  along  the  northeast  coast  of  North  America. 
The  same  year  Jacques  Cartier  conducted  an  exploring  ex- 
pedition to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  He  ascended  the  great 
river  of  the  North  as  far  as  the  Island  of  Orleans.  He  first 
called  the  spacious  gulf  into  which  the  river  discharged  the 
'♦  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence ;"  the  name  has  since  been  extended 
to  the  whole  river.  The  country  along  both  shores  he  also 
first  called  "New  France."  Six  years  afterward,  Cartier 
and  La  Roche  de  Robertval  led  out  a  colony  from  France,  to 
form  a  settlement  in  the  newly-discovered  country.  They 
failed  in  the  attempt.  The  inclemency  of  the  climate  and  the 
hostility  of  the  natives  defeated  all  their  plans.     For  several 


A.D.   1608.]       HISTORY  OP  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI.  Ill 

years  afterward,  other  colonies  were  led  out  to  form  settle- 
ments along  the  shores  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  as  well  as  uj)on 
the  Atlantic  coast,  south  and  southwest  of  the  Gulf  of  St.  Law- 
rence, and  known  as  "  Acadie"  and  "  Cape  Breton  ;"  yet  such 
was  the  inclemency  of  the  climate  and  the  fierceness  of  the  In- 
dian tribes,  that  the  colonists  were  compelled  to  abandon  their 
settlements,  or  submit  to  perish  of  hunger,  or  die  by  the  hand 
of  the  savages. 

[A.D.  1608.]  France  had  been  too  much  involved  in  wars 
in  Europe  to  expend  her  resources  in  making  explorations 
and  settlements  in  distant,  unknown  regions.  More  than  sixty 
years  had  elapsed  after  Cartier's  first  voyage  up  the  St.  Law- 
rence, when  the  spirit  of  adventure  revived  in  France.  Again 
men  were  found  willing  to  tempt  the  rigors  of  the  climate  and 
the  dangers  of  those  inhospitable  regions.  A  colony  was  con- 
ducted by  Samuel  Champlain  to  the  shores  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence. A  bold  and  experienced  mariner,  he  advanced  up  that 
river,  in  the  summer  of  1608,  about  three  hundred  and  sixty 
miles,  to  the  Island  of  Orleans.*  The  same  summer,  in  July, 
he  cleared  the  ground,  and  erected  a  few  cabins  to  shelter  his 
little  colony  from  the  rigors  of  a  Canadian  winter.  This  was 
the  foundation  of  the  city  of  Quebec,  which  was  cotemporane- 
ous  with  the  first  settlement  in  Virginia,  upon  James's  River. 

The  same  year,  Champlain,  in  hopes  of  securing  the  friend- 
ship and  confidence  of  the  Huron  and  Algonquin  tribes,  was 
induced  to  aid  them,  with  a  few  of  his  troops,  in  a  war  expe- 
dition against  the  Iroquois  confederacy,  then  inhabiting  the 
country  south  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  on  both  sides  of  the  lake, 
which  still  perpetuates  his  name.  The  Ilurons  and  Algon- 
quins  inhabited  the  northern  shore?"  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and 
of  Lake  Ontario.  With  the  aid  of  the  French  soldiers,  they 
obtained  a  victory  over  their  enemies,  near  the  Sorel  River. 
By  this  means  Champlain  secured  the  friendship  of  the  Algon- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,' vol.  i.,  p.  38,  octavo  edition  of  1827. 

This  is  a  valuable  repository  of  many  historical  events  and  transactions  connected 
with  the  early  history  of  the  settlements  in  the  provinces  of  New  France  and  Louisi- 
ana. The  author,  Judge  Francois  Xavier  Martin,  has  evinced  much  research  in  col- 
lecting the  incidents  of  the  early  history  of  these  provinces  ;  but  he  has  not  been  clear 
and  concise  in  his  arrangement,  which  is  often  defective  and  irregular.  The  work 
preserves  the  character  of  annals,  although,  from  a  want  of  strict  care  in  the  author,  or 
negligence  in  the  printer,  events  are  often  detailed  under  erroneous  years ;  and  the 
reader  is  apt  to  be  confused,  :;r  misled  by  erroneous  dates.  Not  writing  in  his  native 
tongue,  the  author  could  not  be  expected  to  conform  to  the  strict  idiom  of  the  English 
language.    He  has,  however,  leil  us  a  valuable  store-house  for  the  future  historian. 


112 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


quin  tribes  for  his  people,  but  entailed  upon  their  descendants, 
for  ninety  years,  the  implacable  hostility  of  the  more  warlike 
Iroquois.* 

[A.D.  1615.]  Difficulties  and  privations  innumerable  await- 
ed the  feeble  colony,  but  fortitude  and  perseverance  sustained 
them  through  the  darkest  hour.  Each  closing  year  brought 
them  additional  emigrants,  and  their  numbers  slowly  increas- 
ed. Restricted  in  their  advances  south  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 
the  colony  was  confined  to  the  rigorous  climate  of  Quebec ; 
yet  Champlain,  before  the  close  of  the  year  1015,  had  explored 
Lake  Huron  by  way  of  the  Ottawa  River  and  lakes.  Four- 
teen years  after  the  settlement  was  made,  the  city  of  Quebec 
was  a  small  hamlet  containing  but  fifty  inhabitants,  men, 
women,  and  children.  Six  years  later,  Quebec  contained  only 
one  hundred  souls,  upon  the  point  of  starvation,  whose  only 
wealth  was  a  few  furs  and  peltries  purchased  of  the  Indians. 

[A.D.  1628.]  For  many  years  after  their  first  settlement, 
Champlain  continued  to  conduct  the  affairs  of  the  little  colony. 
When  Iroquois  hostilities  did  not  prevent,  he  explored  the  re- 
gions and  rivers  for  many  miles  on  both  sides  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence, and  even  to  the  southern  extremity  of  Lake  Champlain. 
Every  year  found  his  little  colony  slowly  increasing  in  num- 
bers, and  their  settlements  gradually  but  slowly  extending. 

[A.D.  1632.]  But  it  was  impossible  to  advance  settlements 
into  the  wilderness  without  the  aid  of  that  spirit  of  meekness, 
benevolence,  and  perseverance  which  characterized  the  early 
missionaries  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  this  part  of  America. 

The  genius  of  Champlain,  whose  comprehensive  mind  plan- 
ned enduring  establishments  for  French  commerce,  and  a  ca- 
reer of  discovery  that  should  carry  the  lilies  of  the  Bourbons 
to  the  extremity  of  North  America,  could  devise  no  method 
of  building  up  the  dominion  of  France  in  Canada  but  an  alli- 
ance with  the  Hurons,  or  of  confirming  that  alliance  by  the  es- 
tablishment of  missions.     "  Such  a  policy  was  congenial  to  the 

*  Champlain  had  been  many  yean  engaged  as  a  mariner  in  exploring  the  northern 
coasts  near  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  comprising  the  provinces  now  known  as  Nova 
Scotia,  New  Brunswick,  and  Cape  Breton,  south  of  tlie  Oulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  which 
were  embraced  in  a  grant  made  by  Henry  IV.  of  France  to  a  company  of  merchants, 
and  others  of  Rouen,  of  whom  Pontgrave  and  Chauvin  were  principal.  In  1608,  Sam- 
uel Champlain  conducted  a  colony  up  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  on  the  third  of  July  laid 
the  foundation  of  Cluebec.  Champlain  for  many  years  afterward  superintended  the 
colony,  and  in  1613  had  a<lvanced  his  settlements  up  the  river  and  laid  out  Montreal. 
See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  34-39,  and  45. 


A.D.  1G34.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


113 


Catholic  Church,  and  was  favored  by  the  conditions  of  the 
charter  itself,  which  recognized  the  neophyte  among  the  sav- 
ages as  an  enfranchised  citizen  of  France."  ♦'  Thus  it  was 
neither  commercial  enterprise  nor  royal  ambition  which  car- 
ried the  power  of  France  into  the  heart  of  our  Continent :  the 
motive  was  religion."* 

[A.D.  1633.]  In  1633,  twenty-five  years  after  the  first  set- 
tlement, Champlain  was  still  governor  of  New  France.  The 
colony,  notwithstanding  its  gradual  increase,  encountered  dan- 
gers and  privations  under  the  most  adverse  circumstances. 
The  inclemency  of  the  climate  enabled  them  to  procure  but 
scanty  sustenance  from  the  soil,  and  the  constant  state  of  hos- 
tilities among  the  great  powers  of  Europe  cut  off  all  supplies 
from  the  mother  country.  Nor  was  this  all :  the  early  enmity 
of  the  Iroquois  continued  to  increase.  Seldom  did  a  single 
year  pass  without  some  hostile  incursion  or  depredation  upon 
the  settlements,  from  Quebec  to  Montreal. 

Water-courses,  lakes,  and  rivers  are  the  high-ways  of  Na- 
ture ;  and  especially  to  uncivilized  man,  or  to  civilized  man 
beyond  the  reach  of  civilization,  they  are  favorite  routes.  To 
those  who  have  no  axes,  the  thick  jungle  is  impervious ;  emi- 
gration by  water  suits  the  genius  of  civilized  life  no  less  than 
the  savage ;  canoes  are  older  than  wagons,  and  ships  than 
chariots ;  a  gulf,  a  strait,  the  sea  intervening  between  islands, 
divide  less  than  the  matted  forest.  Civilized  man,  no  less  than 
the  savage,  emigrates  by  sea  and  by  rivers ;  and  in  America 
he  has  advanced  from  Cape  Breton  to  Fon  du  Lac,  and  from 
the  coast  of  Florida  he  has  ascended  the  Mississippi,  two  thou- 
sand miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri,  while  interior  por- 
tions of  New  York  and  Ohio  were  still  a  wilderness.  To  man 
beyond  the  reach  of  civilization,  no  path  is  free  but  the  sea, 
the  lake,  or  the  river. 

[A.D.  1634.]  As  early  as  the  year  1634,  the  French  Jesuits, 
Brebeuf  and  Daniel,  had  penetrated  the  dangerous  wilds  as  far 
as  the  Straits  of  St.  Mary  and  the  southern  shore  of  Lake  Su- 
perior. Their  avenue  to  the  West  was  by  the  Ottawa  and 
French  Rivers  of  Lower  Canada.  At  that  time,  and  for  forty 
years  afterward,  the  continued  hostilities  of  the  Five  Nations, 

*  See  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  121  j  also  p.  327.  This  is  a 
work  of  rare  merit ;  and  to  the  eloquent  author  we  are  indebted  for  much  valuable  his- 
torical matter  pertaining  to  the  early  scttlemcuts  of  France  in  North  America.  In  the 
following  chapters  we  have  made  free  extracts  from  his  excellent  pages. 

Vol.  L— H 


^\ 


114 


UIBTORY    OF    TUB 


[book  II. 


and  especially  of  the  Mohawks,  had  excluded  the  French  from 
the  navigation  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and  Lake  Ontario.  All  the 
country  south  of  Lakes  Ontario  and  Erie  was  unknown,  except 
as  the  abode  of  their  implacable  enemies.  On  Lake  Erie  the 
French  had  not  lanched  even  a  canoe,  for  the  war  parties  of 
the  Iroquois  occupied  all  the  avenues  near  the  lakes,  and  death 
was  the  forfeit  of  the  adventurous  missionary  and  trader  south 
of  Ontario. 

*♦  Within  three  years  after  the  second  occupation  of  Canada, 
the  number  of  Jesuit  priests  in  the  province  reached  fifteen ; 
and  every  tradition  bears  testimony  to  their  worth.  They  had 
the  faults  of  ascetic  superstition,  but  the  horrors  of  a  Canadian 
life  in  the  wilderness  were  resisted  by  an  invincible,  passive 
courage,  and  a  deep,  internal  tranquillity.  Away  from  the  amen- 
ities of  life,  away  from  the  opportunities  of  vain-glory,  they  be- 
came dead  to  the  world,  and  possessed  their  souls  in  unaltera- 
ble peace."* 

[  A.D.  1 636.]  The  unwearied  Jesuits  of  the  Catholic  Church 
were  always  in  advance  of  civilization.  "  The  history  of  their 
labors  is  connected  with  the  origin  of  every  celebrated  town 
in  the  annals  of  French  America ;  not  a  river  was  entered,  not 
a  cape  was  turned,  but  a  Jesuit  led  the  way."t 

[A.D.  1640].  Although  certain  privation  and  suffering  were 
their  lot,  and  martyrdom  might  be  the  crown  of  their  labors, 
they  ventured  into  the  remotest  regions  and  among  the  most 
warlike  tribes.  In  the  autumn  of  1640,  Charles  Raymbault 
and  Claude  Fijart  advanced  to  the  Huron  missions,  destined 
for  service  among  the  Algonquins  of  the  north  and  west.  Al- 
though the  continual  wars  of  the  Mohawks,  or  the  Five  Nations, 
completely  excluded  them  from  the  route  of  the  southern  lakes, 
the  unwearied  missionaries  of  the  Catholic  Church  continued 
to  penetrate  a  thousand  miles  by  the  northern  route  to  the  west, 
among  the  remote  Algonquin  tribes,  and  already  missionary 
stations  had  been  formed  upon  the  northern  shores  of  Lake 
Huron.J 

The  route  to  the  west  passed  over  by  Brebeuf  and  the  early 
missionaries  was  more  than  three  hundred  leagues  from  Que- 
bec, by  the  Ottawa  River,  to  the  Straits  of  St.  Mary.  This 
avenue  led  "  through  a  region  horrible  with  forests.  All  day 
long  they  must  wade  or  handle  the  oar.    At  five-and-thirty 

*   Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  Ii22.  t  Idem,  p.  123.  |  Idem,  p.  145. 


A.D.  IG46.] 


VALLEY    OP   THB    MIBBIBBIPFI. 


115 


water-falls  the  canoes  were  to  be  carried  on  the  shoulders  for 
leagues  through  thickest  woods  and  over  the  roughest  regions ; 
fifty  times  they  were  to  be  dragged  by  hand  through  shallows 
and  rapids  over  sharpest  stones."* 

Nor  were  the  privations  of  heat,  cold,  hunger,  thirst,  and  dis- 
ease all  they  had  to  encounter.  The  hostilities  of  the  Iroquois 
were  more  terrible  than  all  these.  The  advantages  of  a  west- 
ern route,  by  way  of  Lakes  Ontario  and  Erie,  were  early  seen 
by  the  missionaries ;  but  the  fixed  hostility  and  the  power  of 
the  Five  Nations  left  no  hope  of  success  for  gaining  a  safe  In- 
tercourse by  the  St.  Lawrence. 

[A.D.  1641.]  The  following  autumn,  Charles  Raymbault, 
having  visited  Quebec,  proceeded  by  the  Ottawd  route,  in  com- 
pany with  Isaac  Jouges,  to  the  Straits  of  St.  Mary,  to  establish 
a  mission  at  that  point.  The  former  died  soon  afterward,  the 
victim  of  a  lingering  consumption ;  the  latter  was  captured  the 
following  year  by  the  Mohawks  upon  the  St.  Lawrence  as  ho 
returned  from  Quebec  to  St.  Mary's.  Carried  prisoner  to  the 
banks  of  the  Mohawk  River,  he  guffered  all  the  tortures  which 
Indian  vengeance  could  inflict  upon  their  enemies.  "  In  sev- 
eral villages  he  was  compelled  to  run  the  gantlet,  and  tortured 
with  hunger  and  thirst,  and  every  torment  which  petulant  youth 
could  inflict.  Surviving  all  these,  he  was  retained  a  captive 
until  humanely  ransomed  by  the  Dutch  on  Hudson's  River." 

[A.D.  1643.]  A  similar  fate  awaited  Father  Bressani.  Tak- 
en prisoner  while  on  his  way  to  the  Hurons ;  beaten,  mangled, 
mutilated ;  driven  barefoot  over  rough  paths,  through  briers  and 
thickets ;  scourged  by  a  whole  village ;  burned,  tortured,  and 
scarred,  he  was  an  eye-witness  to  the  fate  of  one  of  his  com- 
panions, who  was  boiled  and  eaten.  Yet  some  mysterious  awe 
protected  his  life,  and  he,  too,  was  humanely  rescued  by  the 
Dutch.t 

Such  were  the  horrors  which  the  French  encountered  from 
the  Iroquois  in  their  first  attempts  to  penetrate  to  the  West ;  but 
the  fearless  Jesuit  led  the  way,  and  finally,  after  the  lapse  of 
more  than  half  a  century,  gained  the  friendship  of  the  warlike 
Five  Nations. 

[A.D.  1646.]  The  whole  strength  of  the  colony  lay  in  the 
missions.  The  government  was  weakened  by  the  royal  jeal- 
ousy ;  the  population  hardly  increased ;  there  was  no  military 

*  Bancrofi^  vol.  iii.,  p.  122.  f  Idem,  p.  134. 


no 


IlIHTOHY    OF    TUB 


[book  II. 


force;  and  the  trading  company  deriving  no  revenue,  except 
from  IiKlian  trade  and  traffic  in  skins,  couid  make  no  great  ex- 
penditures for  defense,  or  for  promoting  colonization.  Thus 
the  missionaries  were  left  ahnost  alone  to  contend  with  tlie 
myriads  of  braves  wIjo  roamed  over  the  basin  of  tlie  St.  Law- 
rence. Many  had  lost  tlieir  hves  in  the  wilderness,  victims  of 
savage  cruelty,  or  of  hunger,  cold,  and  the  dangers  of  the  west- 
ern wilds.* 

[A.D.  1647.]  Father  Jouges,  sacrificing  his  life  to  an  effort 
to  reconcile  the  Iroquois,  volunteered  as  an  envoy  of  peace  to 
the  Mohawks.  He  arrived  in  peace  among  them,  but  soon  af- 
terward was  killed  by  them  as  an  enchanter,  who  had  blighted 
their  fields.  The  death-blow  he  received  with  tranquillity  ;  his 
head  was  hung  ujjon  the  palisades  of  the  village,  and  his  body 
thrown  into  the  Mohawk  lliver.f 

[A.D.  1049.]  This  was  the  signal  of  war,  and  the  following 
year  the  missionary  villages  of  the  French  along  the  St.  Law- 
rence and  Ottawa  were  destroyed,  and  their  inmates  cruelly 
murdered,  or  tortured  bv  fire  unto  death.  The  hostile  incur- 
sions  of  the  Iroquois  for  five  years  against  the  settlements 
upon  the  St.  Lawrence,  as  well  as  upon  the  Ottawil  and  Lake 
Huron,  were  terrible  and  destructive.  Many  were  butchered 
in  the  general  carnage,  and  others  were  reserved  for  the  lin- 
gering tortures  of  the  slow  fire.  Among  these,  the  intrepid  and 
meek  Brebeuf  and  Lallemand  suffered  tortures  indescribable. 

[A.D.  1650.]  Thus  had  the  Jesuits  penetrated  into  the  coun- 
try on  the  south  side  of  Lake  Ontario,  where  they  had  gained  a 
precarious  and  dangerous  field  of  operations,  and  where  mar- 
tyrdom might  have  been  deemed  the  certain  test  of  their  zeal. 
But  instead  of  being  discouraged  at  the  prospect  of  sufifering 
and  death,  the  enthusiasm  of  all  France  seemed  to  have  awa- 
kened to  the  vast  field  now  opened  in  New  France  for  the  tri- 
umphs of  the  cross,  in  the  conversion  of  savage  tribes,  who 
roamed  in  the  remote  wilds  beyond  the  Western  lakes.  Jesuits 
and  monks  of  every  order  began  to  flock  to  Quebec  and  Mon- 
tr6al,  ready  to  commence  the  work  of  Christian  benevolence. 

[A.D.  1655.]  At  length  the  Iroquois  themselves  seemed 
wearied  of  the  strife,  and  manifested  a  willingness  for  peace 
and  friendship  with  the  French.  The  Jesuits  lost  no  opportu- 
nity of  introducing  Christianity  and  its  benign  doctrines  among 


Bancroft,  voL  iii.,  p.  137. 


t  Idem,  p.  138. 


A.D.  lOft?.] 


VAM.EY    OF    THE    MIflfllflfllPPI. 


117 


their  wjuliko  nnd  vindictive  tribes :  the  first  opening  which 
presented  for  the  nccuniphshnient  of  so  deflirahle  an  object 
was  seized  with  ardor  hy  the  devoted  missionaries  of  the  cross, 
ever  ready  to  brave  new  dangers  and  new  privations.  With 
all  her  deformities,  let  us  yet  pay  a  merited  tribute  to  the  Church 
of  Home.  Zealous,  earnest,  untiring  in  her  efl'orts  to  evange- 
lize the  world,  she  carried  the  cross  forwanl,  she  rallied  around 
it ;  for  there  were  pure  spirits  in  the  midst  of  her ;  men  full 
of  the  power  of  God  and  holiness,  who  practically  illustrated 
the  doctrines  they  taught ;  and  well  might  the  Protestni\t  world 
be  counseled  by  the  Catholic,  in  the  vigor  with  whic^h  his  mis- 
sionary operations  were  conducted  among  the  untutored  sav- 
ages, s 

[A.D.  1G5G.]  La  Moyne  had  settled  himself  upon  the  banks 
of  the  Mohawk,  selecting  this  river  for  his  abode,  in  the  vain 
hope  of  infusing  the  gentle  spirit  of  civilization  into  the  savage 
nature  of  the  Mohawk  tribe.  Chaumonot,  an  Italian  j)riest,  and 
Claude  Dablon,  a  missionary  from  France,  were  hospitably 
welcomed  to  the  principal  village  of  the  Onondagas.  A  gen- 
eral convocation  of  the  tribe  greeted  them  with  joy  and  songs 
of  welcome,  as  the  bearers  of  a  "  heavenly  message."  A  chap- 
el at  once  sprung  into  existence,  formed  by  hewed  logs,  and 
hung  with  bark  and  mats  ;  and  there,  in  the  heart  of  New  York, 
the  solemn  services  of  the  Roman  Church  were  chanted  as  se- 
curely as  in  any  part  of  Christendom.  The  Onondagas  dwelt 
upon  the  Oswego  River,  and  its  basin  was  deemed  a  part  of 
the  dominions  of  France.* 

A  colony  of  fifty  Frenchmen  soon  embarked  for  Onondaga, 
and  received  a  hearty  welcome  from  the  rejoicing  Indiam. 
The  Cayugas  also  desired  a  missionary,  and  they  received  the 
fearless  Rene  Mesnard.  In  their  village  a  chapel  was  erected, 
with  mats  for  tapestry,  and  there  the  pictures  of  the  Savior 
and  the  Virgin  Mother  were  unfolded  to  the  admiring  children 
of  the  wilderness. 

[A.D.  1657.]  The  Oneidas  also  listened  to  the  missionary, 
and  early  in  the  year  1657  Chaumonot  reached  the  more  fer- 
tile and  more  densely  populated  land  of  the  Senecas  ;  and  the 
influence  of  France  and  the  missionaries  was  felt  from  the  Mo- 
hawk to  the  Genesee  River.f 

But  the  savage  nature  of  the  tribes  was  unchanged.    A  war 

*  Bancroft,  vol  iii.,  p.  144.  t  Idem,  p.  144. 


I 


118 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  II. 


of  extermination  at  this  very  time  was  waged  by  the  Iroquois 
against  the  Eries,  a  nation  in  the  northern  portion  of  the  present 
State  of  Ohio.  Prisoners  were  brought  home  to  the  villages 
and  delivered  to  the  flames ;  and  what  could  the  missionaries 
expect  from  nations  who  could  burn  even  children,  with  the  re- 
finements of  tortures  ?  Yet  they  pressed  in  the  steps  of  their 
countrymen,  who  had  been  boiled  and  roasted ;  they  made  their 
home  among  cannibals;  hunger,  and  thirst,  and  nakedness 
were  to  be  endured,  and  fever  and  sickness  had  already  visited 
their  little  colony.*  '  • 

[A.D.  1658.]  It  was  not  until  the  colony  in  New  France 
was  fifty  years  old,  that  it  possessed  sufficient  strength  to  repel 
successfully  the  incursions  of  their  southern  enemies.  In  1659, 
the  settlements  about  Montreal  were  deemed  sufficiently  se- 
cure to  be  erected  into  a  bishop's  see.  The  same  year,  Francis 
de  Leval,  as  bishop  of  Montreal,  arrived  with  a  large  supply 
of  ecclesiastics  from  France.  These  were  exclusive  of  the  Jes- 
uits and  recoll^t  monks,  who,  up  to  this  time,  were  the  only  spir- 
itual guides  in  the  province.  A  seminary  under  the  bishop's 
charge  was  established  at  Montreal,  and  another  at  Quebec.f 
The  Church  of  Rome  was  established  in  the  center  of  New 
France.  The  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  Catholic  Church 
were  extended  to  the  remote  West.  The  monk,  by  acts  of  self- 
denial,  sought  salvation  for  himself;  the  Jesuit  plunged  into  the 
secular  affairs  of  men,  to  maintain  the  interests  of  the  Church. 

The  Franciscan,  as  a  mendicant  order,  being  excluded  from 
the  newly-discovered  world,  the  office  of  converting  the  natives 
of  New  France  was  intrusted  to  the  Jesuits ;  and  their  mission- 
aries continued  to  defy  every  danger  and  to  endure  every  toil. 
The  pleasures  of  life  and  the  opportunities  of  vain-glory  were 
too  remote  to  influence  their  lives  or  to  affect  their  character. 

Yet  the  missionaries  could  not  control  the  angry  passions  of 
men.  Border  collisions  again  broke  out:  the  Oneidas  mur- 
dered three  Frenchmen,  and  the  French  retaliated  by  seizing 
Iroquois.  A  conspiracy  among  the  Onondagas  compelled  the 
French  to  abandon  their  chapel,  their  cabins,  and  their  dwell- 
ings in  the  valley  of  the  Oswego.  The  Mohawks  compelled  Le 
Moyne  to  return,  and  the  French  and  the  Five  Nations  were 
once  more  at  war.  Such  was  the  issue  of  the  most  successful 
attempt  at  French  colonization  in  western  New  York  as  late  as 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  145.  t  Martin'i  Looiaiana,  vol  L,  p.  65, 66. 


11 


A.D.  1662.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE   MISSISSIPPL 


110 


1660.  The  extension  of  British  power  over  the  Dutch  of  New 
Amsterdam  was  a  guarantee  that  France  could  never  regain 
the  mastery.  Many  zealous  missionaries  terminated  their  cour- 
ageous course  and  their  lives  in  all  the  agonies  of  Indian  tor- 
ture, but  with  unwavering  confidence  in  God. 

[A.D.  1660.]  The  Iroquois,  in  the  mean  time,  aided  by  Eu- 
ropean arms  received  from  Albany,  had  exterminated  the 
Eries,  and  had  carried  their  conquests  as  far  as  ihe  Miamis. 
The  western  tribes  desired  commerce  ;  and,  forced  by  the  ne- 
cessity of  the  case,  sought  an  alliance  with  the  French,  that 
they  might  be  enabled  to  resist  the  Iroquois.  The  French 
traders  had  penetrated  as  far  west  as  Lake  Superior  and  Green 
Bay ;  and  a  deputation  of  three  hundred  Algonquins,  in  sixty 
canoes,  laden  with  peltry,  returned  with  them  to  Quebec.  Jes- 
uit missionaries  were  commissioned  to  form  alliances  with  the 
numerous  tribes  in  the  remote  West.  The  Bishop  of  Quebec, 
Francis  de  Leval  himself,  kindled  with  zeal  to  engage  in  the 
mission  to  the  remote  tribes ;  but  the  lot  fell  upon  Rene  Mes- 
nard.  Every  personal  motive  seemed  to  retain  him  at  Que- 
bec, but  "  powerful  instincts"  impelled  him  to  the  enterprise. 

"  Obedient  to  his  vows,  the  aged  man  entered  upon  the  path 
that  was  red  with  the  blood  of  his  predecessors,  and  made  haste 
to  scatter  the  seeds  of  truth  through  the  wilderness,  although 
the  sower  cast  his  seed  in  weeping." 

After  a  residence  of  eight  months  among  the  tribes  on  the 
southern  shore  of  Lake  Superior,  he  yielded  to  the  invitations 
of  the  Hurons  in  the  Isle  of  St.  Michael,  and  departed  with  one 
attendant  for  the  Bay  of  Chegoimegon.  On  his  route,  while 
his  attendant  was  engaged  in  transporting  a  canoe  across  the 
portage  of  the  Kawena  Lake,  he  was  lost  in  the  forest,  and 
was  never  again  seen.  Long  afterward,  the  cassock  and  brev- 
iary of  Ren6  Mesnard  were  kept  as  amulets  among  the  Sioux. 

As  late  as  1660,  such  were  the  horrors  and  the  vengeance  of 
the  Iroquois,  aided  by  their  English  allies,  that  the  settlements 
upon  the  St.  Lawrence  had  well-nigh  been  abandoned.  The 
missionary  spirit  alone  prevented  that  result,  and  subsequently 
pre\  liled  in  acquiring  for  the  French  the  friendship  and  alli- 
ance ol  the  Five  Nations. 

[A.D.  1662.]  Peace  with  the  Five  Nations  was  at  length  par- 
tially confirmed,  and  the  missionaries  had  resumed  their  efforts 
to  form  a  mission  among  the  Iroquois,  but  the  Mohawks  would 


120 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


not  be  appeased,  and  Montreal  was  not  safe.  The  "  Hundred 
Associjites,"  to  whom  New  France  had  been  committed,  re- 
solved to  surrender  the  province  to  the  king.  Under  the  aus- 
pices of  Colbert,  it  was  conceded  to  the  company  of  the  West 
Indies.  After  various  efforts  at  fit  appointments,  the  year  1666 
saw  the  colony  of  New  France  first  protected  by  a  royal  reg- 
iment, with  the  aged  but  indefatigable  Tracy  as  viceroy ;  with 
Courcelles,  a  veteran  soldier,  as  governor,  and  with  M.  Talon, 
a  man  of  business  and  integrity,  as  intendant  and  representa- 
tive of  the  king  in  civil  aflfairs.* 

[A.D.  1665.]  The  war  with  the  Iroquois  was  to  be  renew- 
ed with  more  v^igor  when  the  emergency  might  require  it, 
and  the  savages  soon  found  the  power  of  the  French  on  the 
St.  Lawrence  was  to  be  feared  and  conciliated. 

From  the  year  1664  the  colony  in  New  France  began  to 
gain  a  footing  on  the  south  side  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  The  Iro- 
quois began  to  recede  from  the  shores  of  that  river,  and  from 
those  of  Lake  Champlain.  French  settlements  began  to  ex- 
tend up  the  Chambly,  or  Sorel  River,  and  trading  posts  were 
established  on  the  east  side  of  Lake  Champlain,  and  south  of 
the  Upper  St.  Lawrence,  and  within  the  limits  of  ilit  nresent 
state  of  New  York.f    By  the  year  1665,  small  Fr-  ttle- 

ments,  or  trading  posts,  extended  as  far  south  as  Lak  ^^jrge ; 
several  years  previously,  a  fort  had  been  erected  upon  the 
Chambly  River  to  check  the  incursions  of  the  Iroquois  upon 
Quebec  by  that  route.  This  had  broken  up  their  incursions 
from  that  quarter,  but  they  soon  found  new  routes  to  the  settle- 
ments on  the  St.  Lawrence.  In  these,  also,  they  were  met  and 
checked  by  forts.  They  next  sought  the  route  by  way  of  Lake 
Ontario,  and  down  the  St.  Lawrence.  Their  approach  to  the 
settlements  was  always  by  water  in  their  war-canoes,  through 
the  lakes  and  tributary  streams  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  To  com- 
mand the  St.  Lawrence  against  their  incursions  from  Lake 
Ontario,  Fort  Cataracoui  was  subsequently  built  in  1670.  near 
the  present  site  of  Kingston,  in  Upper  Canada,  and  near  the 
point  where  the  river  flows  from  the  lake. 

[A.D.  1669.]  For  two  years  past.  Father  Claude  Allouez, 
who  had  embarked  by  the  way  of  the  Ottawd,  had  been  on  the 
southern  shores  of  Lake  Superior,  and  had  extended  his  inquiries 
and  missionary  labors  among  the  Chippewas;  had  instituted 

*  Martin's  Looiaianr,  vol.  i.,  p.  79.  t  Idem,  p.  73. 


A.D.  1670.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


121 


peace  between  them  and  the  Sioux ;  and  with  the  Potawata- 
mies,  Sacs,  and  Foxes,  who  flocked  to  him,  he  had  formed  the 
basis  of  a  lasting  alliance  of  commerce,  and  mutual  defense 
against  the  Iroquois.  He  had  also  learned  from  the  remote 
tribes  of  a  great  river  further  to  the  west,  known  by  the  na- 
tives as  the  Mesasippi,  or  •'  Great  River,"  which,  as  yet,  no 
Frenchmaiv  had  seen. 

Allouez  now  returned  to  Quebec  to  urge  the  establishment 
of  permanent  missions,  which  should  be  accompanied  by  little 
colonies  of  French  emigrants,  who  were  willing  to  venture  into 
the  remote  West  upon  the  shores  of  Lakes  Huron  and  Michigan. 

Peace  now  prevailed,  and  favored  the  progress  of  the  French 
dominion ;  a  recruit  of  missionaries  had  arrived  from  France, 
and  among  them  was  James  Marquette.  Claude  Dablon  and 
James  Marquette  repaired  to  the  Chippewas,  at  the  "  Sault," 
to  establish  the  mission  of  St.  Marie.  This  formed  the  oldest 
settlement  by  Europeans  within  the  present  limits  of  Michigan.* 
A  mission  was  also  opened  at  Green  Bay,  still  further  west. 
In  this  remote  region  these  devoted  missionaries  remained, 
"mingling  happiness  with  suffering,  and  winning  enduring 
glory  by  their  fearless  perseverance."! 

[A.D.  1670.]  Such  had  been  the  continued  hostility  of  the 
Iroquois  tribes  until  late  in  the  seventeenth  century,  aided  and 
excited  by  the  English  colonies  of  New  England  and  New 
York,  that  the  French  missions  and  settlements  had  extended 
more  than  a  thousand  miles  westward  op  thd  lakes,  and  even 
to  the  Mississippi,  fifteen  hundred  miles  west  of  Quebec,  be- 
fore they  had  extended  one  hundred  miles  south  and  east  of 
the  St.  Lawrence.  Surprising  as  it  may  appear  to  the  reader, 
still  it  is  nevertheless  true,  that  the  French  colonies  in  the  Illi- 
nois country,  and  upon  the  Wabash,  were  carrying  on  a  prof- 
itable trade  with  the  settlements  on  the  Lower  Mississippi,  and 
about  Mobile,  before  a  permanent  settlement  had  been  effect- 
ed on  the  southern  shores  of  Lake  Champlain.  About  the  time 
that  Fort  Cataracoui  was  built  near  the  outlet  of  Lake  Onta- 
rio, tradeirs  and  voyagers  had  begun  to  penetrate  the  Chambly 
River  to  Lake  Champlain.  Fifly  years  elapsed  from  that  time 
before  the  French  settlements  extended  as  far  south  as  Crown 
Point  and  Ticonderoga.  Then  they  began  to  settle  west  of 
the  Green  Mountains,  and  on  the  eastern  shore  of  Champlain. 

*   Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  153.  *  Idem,  p.  150-153. 


122 


HISTORY   OF  TUB 


[book  II. 


To  the  east  they  could  see  the  towering  peaks  of  the  Green 
Mountains,  "  Verd  Monts,"  from  which  the  State  of  Vermont 
takes  its  name. 

The  colony  of  New  France  had  now  increased  to  eight  thou- 
sand souls,  chiefly  settled  on  the  St.  Lawrence,  from  Quebec 
to  within  one  hundred  miles  of  Lake  Ontario.  For  many  years 
Fort  Cataracoui  remained  a  remote  frontier  post ;  but  traders 
and  voyageurs  began  to  visit  the  remote  tribes  of  the  West  on 
the  southern  shores  of  the  great  lakes,  as  far  as  the  western 
limit  of  the  present  State  of  Ohio.  In  those  remote  regions  the 
native  tribes  were  less  hostile,  and  were  well  disposed  to  re- 
ceive and  trade  with  the  French,  who  soon  penetrated  in  their 
trading  voyages  as  far  as  Lake  Michigan  and  Green  Bay. 
The  Jesuits,  or  Catholic  missionaries,  were  always  in  advance 
of  the  trading  establishments.  As  early  as  1060,  one  year  af- 
ter the  arrival  qf  the  Bishop  of  Montreal,  they  had  penetrated 
as  far  as  the  Straits  of  Pvlackinac,  where  they  now  pursued  the 
even  tenor  of  their  way  among  the  benighted  children  of  the 
forest.  Each  missionary  had  collected  around  him  a  few  con- 
verted Indians,  who  gladly  received  their  affectionate  instruc- 
tions in  the  elements  of  Catholic  faith.  By  their  kind  ofliices 
and  paternal  regard,  no  less  than  by  their  pious  and  unosten- 
tatious benevolence,  they  gained  the  confidence  of  the  Indians, 
and  prepared  the  way  for  their  more  worldly-minded  country- 
men. Although  from  these  western  tribes,  as  before  observed, 
the  missionaries  had  learned,  in  1007,  that  still  further  to  the 
west  was  an  extensive  and  delightful  region,  beyond  which 
was  a  great  river,  known  to  them  as  the  Mesasippi,  or  "  Great 
River,"  yet  of  this  great  river,  and  the  regions  near  it,  the  mis- 
sionaries could  obtain  but  imperfect  accounts ;  they  could  not 
learn  to  what  point  it  flowed,  nor  into  what  sea  it  discharged ; 
but  they  ascertained  '*  that  it  flowed  neither  toward  the  north 
nor  toward  the  east."*  The  Count  de  Frontenac  this  year  en- 
tered upon  his  duties  as  Governor  of  New  France,  and  success- 
or of  M.  Courcelles. 

As  yet,  no  Frenchman  had  ever  advanced  beyond  Fox  River 
of  Green  Bay.  All  beyond  was  a  region  of  romance,  unknown 
or  mystified  by  Indian  tradition.  The  ardent  entertained  hopes 
that  the  great  river  might  afford  an  easy  and  direct  route  to 
China,  or,  o.t  least,  into  the  South  Pacific  Ocean.     This  was 

*  Martin's  Louiiiaua,  vol.  i.,  p.  76. 


A.D.  1673.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MIS8ISSIPPL 


123 


one  of  the  bubbles  of  the  age.  Every  nation  of  Western  Eu- 
rope liad  been  enthusiastic  with  the  hope  of  discovering  a  di- 
rect route  by  water  to  China,  and  all  had  searched  for  it  in 
vain.  It  was  believed  by  some  that  the  pioneers  of  New 
France  would  have  all  the  glory  of  the  great  discovery,  and 
be  the  first  to  reap  the  advantages  of  the  direct  trade.  To  the 
disappointment  of  the  commercial  world,  this  route  still  re- 
mains ns  much  unknown  as  it  was  two  hundred  years  ago ;  and 
such  it  will  remain  until  it  is  opened  by  way  of  the  Oregon 
River  or  the  Bay  of  California. 

[A.D.  1672.]  "The  purpose  of  discovering  the  Mississippi 
sprung  from  Marquette  himself.  He  had  resolved  on  attempt- 
ing it  in  the  autumn  of  1060,  and  had  selected  a  young  Illinois 
as  his  companion ;  and,  by  his  instruction,  he  became  familiar 
with  the  dialect  of  that  tribe."*  His  proposed  discovery  of 
the  great  river  of  the  West  had  been  favorably  received  by 
the  intendant  of  New  France,  who  was  willing  to  aid  him  in 
the  enterprise. 

[A.D.  1673.]  At  length,  M.  Talon,  the  first  intendant,  was 
on  the  point  of  retiring  to  France,  after  a  long  and  useful  ser- 
vice in  the  province.  Ambitious  to  close  his  career  with  the 
brilliant  discovery  of  the  great  storied  river  of  the  West,  he 
determined  to  set  on  foot  an  expedition  to  this  effect.  For  this 
purpose,  he  selected  M.  Joliet,  a  trader  of  Quebec,  to  conduct 
the  enterprise.  He  was  a  man  of  intelligence  and  great  ex- 
perience in  Indian  affairs,  and  possessed  an  enterprising  and 
energetic  spirit.  Father  Marquette,  a  recollet  monk,  and  still 
a  missionary  among  the  Hurons,  was  likewise  engaged  to  ac- 
compi^ny  the  expedition.  He  was  the  very  soul  of  the  enter- 
prise, to  insure  a  favorable  reception  among  the  distant  tribes. 
He  had  long  been  among  the  Indians,  a  thousand  miles  in  ad- 
vance of  civilization  ;  he  knew  well  their  manners,  feelings,  and 
language,  and  how  to  conciliate  the  suspicious  Indian  into  con- 
fidence and  love.  He  was  one  of  the  worthy  Catholics  who 
spent  many  years  among  the  western  tribes,  and  built  up  among 
them  their  little  churches,  in  which  they  were  regarded  as 
fathers  and  friends.  Father  Marquette  had  endeared  himself 
to  the  savages  in  a  remarkable  manner,  not  only  by  his  apos- 
tolical piety,  but  by  his  tender  affection  for  them,  and  his  kind 
ofilices  in  all  their  distresses.    Such  was  the  veneration  of  the 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  153. 


124 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  I(. 


savages  for  this  good  man,  that  for  years  after  his  death,  when 
overtaken  in  their  frail  bark  canoes  by  the  storms  on  Lake 
Michigan,  it  is  said  they  "  called  upon  the  name  of  Marquette, 
and  the  winds  ceased  and  the  waves  were  still."*  Among 
these  unsophisticated  children  of  Nature,  he  pursued  the  noise- 
less tenor  of  his  way  until  the  spring  of  1673,  when  he  was 
required  to  join  M.  Joliet  in  the  hazardous  enterprise  of  ex- 
ploring the  great  river  of  the  unknown  West. 

With  five  other  Frenchmen,  these  two  adventurous  men  re- 
solved to  enter  upon  the  expedition  and  make  their  way  to  the 
great  river.  All  preparations  for  the  voyage  having  been  com- 
pleted, this  little  band  of  hardy  spirits,  on  the  13th  day  of  May, 
1(573,  set  out  from  Michilimackinac,  the  missionary  station  of 
Father  Marquette.  Having  coasted  along  the  western  shore  of 
Lake  Michigan  for  many  days,  they  entered  the  Bay  of  the  Pu- 
ants,  now  known  as  Green  Bay.  Here  they  entered  Fox  River 
of  the  lakes,  and  ascended,  paddling  their  canoes  up  the  rapid 
stream,  and  occasionally  dragging  them  over  the  rapids.  At 
length  they  arrived  at  a  village  of  the  Fox  River  Indians,  the 
extreme  limit  of  missionary  labor  in  those  western  regions, 
where  Allouez  had  already  planted  the  cross. 

Marquette  and  Joliet  were  introduced  with  due  ceremony 
before  the  chiefs  in  council,  where  the  father  made  known  the 
object  of  their  visit.  "My  companion,"  said  the  venerable 
Marquette, "  is  an  envoy  of  France,  to  discover  new  countries ; 
and  I  am  an  ambassador  from  God,  to  enlighten  them  with  the 
Gospel."t  The  council  received  them  with  favor ;  and,  having 
made  a  few  presents,  Marquette  requested  two  guides  for  their 
journey  on  the  morrow.  The  guides  were  granted  to  conduct 
them  across  the  portage  to  the  Wisconsin  River,  which  was 
said  to  flow  into  the  great  river ;  yet  the  council  deemed  their 
voyage  hazardous  in  the  extreme.  They  reached  the  portage, 
and  their  light  canoes  were  carried  on  their  backs  ncross  the 
dividing  ridge  to  the  Wisconsin.  They  stood  on  the  banks  of 
the  Wisconsin  and  in  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi ;  France  and 
Christianity  stood  side  by  side.  No  Frenchman  had  yet  been 
beyond  this  point.  The  Indian  guides  refused  to  proceed 
further,  and  determined  to  return.  They  endeavored  to  dis- 
suade the  holy  father  from  his  perilous  voyage  among  unknown 
and  fierce  nations  of  Indians,  who  would  destroy  him  without 

*  Ohorlevoix'a  Letters.  t  Dancroft's  United  States,  vol  vL,  p.  156. 


A.D.  1673.] 


VALLET   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


195 


cause.  Tradition  told  of  monsters  in  the  great  river  that  would 
swallow  both  man  and  his  canoe ;  also  of  a  demon,  or  man' 
itouy  that  buried  in  the  boiling  waters  all  who  ventured  upon 
them.  Marquette  thanked  them  for  their  good  advice  ;  but  he 
could  not  follow  it,  "  since  the  salvation  of  souls  was  at  stake, 
for  which  he  would  be  overjoyed  to  give  his  life." 

The  Indian  guides  left  them.  "  The  guides  returned,"  says 
the  gentle  Marquette, "  leaving  us  alone  in  this  unknown  land, 
in  the  hands  of  Providence."*  They  prepared  to  pursue  their 
perilous  voyage  to  the  Mississippi,  strangers  among  unknown 
tribes. 

They  began  to  float  down  the  rapid  Wisconsin,  and  seven 
days  brought  them  to  the  great  river,  which  they  entered  on 
the  17th  of  June,  1673.f  They  descended  the  river,  observ- 
ing the  splendid  country  on  both  sides,  and  the  beautiful  and 
verdant  isles  which  divide  the  channel.  About  one  hundred 
miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Wisconsin,  an  Indian  path,  or 
trail,  was  discovered  on  the  western  shore.  Marquette  and 
his  fellow-envoy  determined  to  trace  the  path,  and  form  some 
acquaintance  with  the  tribes  of  that  region.  At  length,  after 
a  walk  of  several  miles,  they  came  in  sight  of  an  Indian  town, 
or  village.  Commending  themselves  to  God,  they  determined 
to  make  themselves  known  by  a  loud  cry.  Four  elders  of  the 
village  advance  to  meet  them,  and  conduct  them  into  the  vil- 
lage. They  are  presented  to  the  council,  and  "Marquette  pub- 
lished to  them  the  one  true  God,  their  Creator.  He  spoke 
also  of  the  great  captain  of  the  French,  the  governor  of  Cana- 
da," who  had  humbled  the  "  Five  Nations"  of  the  Iroquois,  and 
compelled  them  to  peace.  This  was  good  news  to  these  re- 
mote savages,  and  procured  them  a  hearty  welcome  and  a 
plentiful  feast.  Six  days  were  spent  among  these  hospitable 
savages ;  nor  could  they  depart  without  the  "  peace-pipe,"  the 
sacred  calumet,  suspended  from  the  neck  of  Marquette,  brill- 
iant with  beauteous  feathers,  which  was  to  be  his  safeguard 
among  strange  tribes.  They  float  down  the  stream,  and  pass 
the  "  most  beautiful  confluence  of  rivers  in  the  world,"  where 
the  transparent  Mississippi  mingles  reluctantly  with  the  turbid 
Missouri,  the  Pekitanoni  of  the  Indians.     They  pass,  also,  the 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  157. 

t  Martin  says,  they  reached  the  Missisgippi  on  the  7th  of  July ;  but  ho  ia  lo  often  in 
error  in  relation  to  dates,  that  his  autliority  must  yield  when  it  conflicts  with  other 
sources  of  information.    See  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  77. 


120 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[nOUK  II. 


confluence  of  the  Ohio,  which  was  afterward  known  for  many 
years  as  the  Wabash,  and  which  likewise  mingles  its  bright 
waters  reluctantly  with  the  turbid  flood. 

They  continued  their  descent  with  the  rapid  current  until 
the  sun  became  oppressive  and  insects  intolerable,  and  whore 
the  canes  become  so  thick  that  the  buffalo  can  not  break  through 
them.  They  approached  a  village  of  the  Michigamies,  in  lat- 
itude 33°.  Armed  with  bows  and  arrows,  with  axes  and  clubs, 
and  bent  on  war,  the  natives, with  terrific  whoops  and  yells,  ad- 
vanced in  their  war-canoes  to  assault  the  helpless  party.  Mar- 
({uette  advanced,  holding  the  sacred  calumet  aloft,  and  thus 
brought  safety  to  his  companions.  The  meek  father  says, 
"  God  touched  the  hearts"  of  the  old,  and  they  restrained  the 
young.  After  several  days  spent  in  refreshing  themselves  with 
the  generous  hospitality  of  this  village,  the  party  proceeded  to 
the  village  of  Akansea,  beyond  the  limits  of  the  Algonquin  di- 
alects. Here  they  conversed  by  an  interpreter ;  and  having 
made  inquiries  of  the  Indians  relative  to  the  course  of  the  riv- 
er, and  the  distance  to  the  sea,  they  determined  to  return  to 
Canada.  It  was  now  about  the  middle  of  July.  They  had 
been  on  the  Mississippi  about  four  weeks,  and  had  descended 
about  eleven  hundred  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Wisconsin. 

But  difficulties  had  increased  as  they  descended ;  and  they 
were  among  tribes  whose  language  they  did  not  understand. 
Their  provisions,  too,  were  well-nigh  exhausted,  and  the  course 
of  the  river  was  sufficiently  ascertained.  The  object  of  their 
mission  was  in  a  great  measure  accomplished,  and  they  deter- 
mined to  venture  no  further  among  unknown  tribes,  where  dis- 
asters and  death  might  overtake  them. 

They  began  to  ascend  the  river ;  and  after  several  weeks 
of  hard  toil  against  a  strong  current,  and  exposed  to  numerous 
privations,  they  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Illinois  River  in 
safety. 

Here  they  ascertained  from  the  Indians  that  this  river  af- 
forded a  much  more  direct  and  easy  route  to  the  great  lakes 
than  that  through  the  Wisconsin.  They  therefore  began  to 
ascend  the  gentle  stream.  After  two  weeks  more  they  cross- 
ed over  from  the  head  streams  of  the  Des-pleins  branch  of  the 
Illinois  into  the  Chicago  Creek,  through  which  they  entered 
Lake  Michigan.  Here  Joliet  and  Marqvette  parted  ;  the  one 
across  to  the  Miami  Indians  of  Lake  Erie,  on  his  way  to  Que- 


A.D.  1080.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MI88IS8IPPI. 


127 


thus 


bee,  to  make  known  the  success  of  the  expedition ;  the  other 
to  his  missionary  post  among  the  Ilurons.*  In  September  the 
father  joined  his  httle  flock,  and  soon  afterward  M.  J<jhet  ar- 
rived at  Quebec. 

This  was  the  first  time  that  any  white  man  had  floated  upon 
the  Mississippi  for  one  hundred  and  thirty  years,  since  the  dis- 
astrous voyage  of  Luis  de  Moscoso,  with  the  remains  of  De 
Soto's  chivalrous  expedition,  in  1543. 

The  discoveries  of  M.  JoHet  and  Father  Marquette  filled  all 
New  France  with  rejoicing.  A  Te  Deum  was  chanted  in  the 
Cathedral.  M.  Joliet  was  suitably  rewarded  by  a  grant  of  the 
Island  of  Anticosti,  in  the  St.  Lawrence ;  Father  Manpiette 
desired  no  other  reward  than  an  approving  conscience  that  he 
had  been  doing  good.  It  was  for  a  time  believed  that  the  long- 
desired  route  to  China  had  been  discovered.  The  jealousy  and 
fears  entertained  toward  the  English  colonies,  which  now  cov- 
ered the  whole  Atlantic  coast  north  of  Florida,  caused  these 
early  discoveries  to  be  concealed,  as  far  as  practicable,  from 
general  publicity  in  Europe.  England  then,  as  now,  was  prone 
to  seize  and  appropriate  the  discoveries  of  others  to  herself. 

Such  was  the  first  discovery  of  the  Mississippi  by  the  French 
from  Canada ;  a  discovery  which  gave  to  France  a  conven- 
tional claim  to  occupy  and  settle  all  the  regions  lying  upon  the 
great  river  itself,  as  well  as  upon  its  great  tributaries. 

[A.D.  1680.]  The  native  occupants  of  the  Illinois  country 
and  the  western  portion  of  New  France,  Us  seen  by  the  first 
Jesuit  missionaries  upon  Lake  Michigan,  were  similar  in  all 
respects  to  the  tribes  previously  known  to  them  on  the  St. 
Lawrence  ;  for  the  first  aspect  of  the  original  inhabitants  of 
the  United  States  was  uniform.  "  Between  the  Indians  of 
Florida  and  Canada  the  diflerence  was  scarcely  perceptible. 
Their  manners  and  institutions,  as  well  as  their  organization, 
had  a  common  physiognomy ;  and,  before  their  languages  be- 
gan to  be  known,  there  was  no  safe  method  of  grouping  the 
nations  into  families.  But  when  the  vast  variety  of  dialects 
came  to  be  compared,  there  were  found  east  of  the  Mississippi 
not  more  than  eight  radically  distinct  languages,  of  which  five 
still  constitute  the  speech  of  pc  verful  communities,  and  three 
are  known  only  as  memorials  of  tribes  that  have  almost  disap- 
peared from  the  earth."t 

*  Martin'i  Louisiana,  toL  i.,  p.  78. 

t  Bancroft'a  Hiatoiy  of  the  United  States,  toI.  liL,  p.  337. 


128 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


The  Algonquin  tongue,  which  existed  not  only  on  the  St. 
Lawrence,  but  also  on  the  Des  Moines,  was  most  widely  dif- 
fused. It  was  heard  from  Cape  Fear  to  the  land  of  the  Es- 
quimaux; from  the  Cumberland  River  of  Kentucky  to  the 
southern  bank  of  the  Missinnippi,  a  thousand  miles  northwest 
from  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi. 

The  Shawanese  connected  the  southeastern  Algonquins  with 
those  of  the  west.  "  The  basin  of  the  Cumberland  River  is 
marked  by  the  earliest  French  geographers  as  the  home  of  this 
restless  nation  of  wanderers.  A  part  of  them  afterward  had 
their  '  cabins'  and  their  *  springs'  in  the  neighborhood  of  Win- 
chester. Their  principal  band  removed  their  hunting-fields  in 
Kentucky  to  the  head  waters  of  one  of  the  great  rivers  of 
South  Carolina ;  and,  at  a  later  day,  an  encampment  of  four 
hundred  and  fifty  of  them,  who  had  been  straggling  in  the 
woods  for  four  years,  was  found  not  far  north  of  the  head  wa- 
ters of  Mobile  River,  on  their  way  to  the  country  of  the  Musk- 
hogees."  "  So  desolate  was  the  wilderness,  that  a  vagabond 
tribe  could  wander  undisturbed  from  Cumberland  River  to 
Alabama,  from  the  head  waters  of  the  Santee  to  the  Susque- 
hanna."* 

The  Miamis  were  more  stable,  and  their  own  traditions 
preserve  the  memory  of  their  ancient  limits.  "  My  father," 
said  the  Miami  orator.  Little  Turtle,  at  Greenville,  in  1795, 
"  kindled  the  first  fire  at  Detroit ;  from  thence  he  extended  his 
lines  to  the  head  wafers  of  the  Scioto  ;  from  thence  to  its  mouth ; 
from  thence  down  the  Ohio  to  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash ;  and 
from  thence  to  Chicago,  on  Lake  Michigan.  These  are  the 
boundaries  within  which  the  prints  of  my  ancestors' houses  are 
seen." 

The  forests  beyond  Detroit  were  at  first  found  unoccupied, 
or,  it  may  be,  roamed  over  by  bands  too  feeble  to  attract  a 
trader  or  to  win  a  missionary.  The  "Ottawas,  Algonquin 
fugitives  from  the  basin  of  the  magnificent  river  whose  name 
commemorates  them,  fled  to  the  Bay  of  Saginaw,  and  took 
possession  of  the  whole  north  as  a  derelict  country ;  yet  the 
Miamis  occupied  its  southern  moiety,  and  their  principal  mis- 
sion was  founded  by  Allouez  on  the  banks  of  the  St.  Joseph's, 
within  the  present  state  of  Michigan." 

"  The  Illinois  were  kindred  to  the  Miamis,  and  their  country 

*  Baucroft's  Histoiy  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  S41. 


A.D.   1060.] 


VALLEY    OF   TIIR    MISSISSIPPI. 


120 


'vith 


country 


lay  between  the  Wabash,  the  Ohio,  and  the  Mississippi.  Mar- 
quette found  a  village  of  them  on  the  Des  Moines ;  but  its  oc- 
cupants soon  withdrew  to  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi.  Kas- 
kaskia,  Cahokia,  and  Peoria  still  preserve  the  names  of  the 
principal  bands,  of  which  the  original  strength  has  been  greatly 
exaggerated.  The  vague  tales  of  a  considerable  population 
vanished  before  the  accurate  observation  of  the  missionaries, 
who  found  in  the  wide  wilderness  of  Illinois  scarcely  three  or 
four  villages.  On  the  discovery  of  America,  the  number  of 
the  scattered  tenants  of  the  territory,  which  now  forms  the  states 
of  Ohio  and  Michigan,  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  and  Kentucky,  could 
hardly  have  exceeded  eighteen  thousand."* 

In  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  Potawatamies 
had  crowded  the  Miamis  from  their  dwellings  at  Chicago ;  the 
intruders  came  from  the  islands  near  the  entrance  of  Green 
Bay,  and  were  a  branch  of  the  great  nation  of  Chippewas. 
That  nation  held  the  country  from  the  mouth  of  Green  Bay  to 
the  head  waters  of  Lake  Superior,  and  were  early  visited  by 
the  French  at  Sault  St.  Marie  and  Chegoimegon.  "They 
adopted  into  their  tribes  many  of  the  Ottawas  from  Upper 
Canada,  and  were  themselves  often  included  under  that  name 
by  the  early  French  writers." 

"  Ottawa  is  but  the  Algonquin  word  for  '  trader,'  and  Mas- 
coutins  are  but  'dwellers  in  the  prairie.'  The  latter  hardly 
implies  a  band  of  Indians  distinct  from  the  Chippewas ;  but 
history  recognizes  as  a  separate  Algonquin  tribe,  near  Green 
Bay,  the  Menomonies,  who  were  found  there  in  1009,  and  re- 
tained their  ancient  territory  long  after  the  period  of  French 
and  English  supremacy,  and  who  prove  their  high  antiquity  as 
a  nation  by  the  singular  character  of  their  dialect."f 

"Southwest  of  the  Menomonies,  the  restless  Sauks  and 
Foxes,  ever  dreaded  by  the  French;  held  the  passes  from  Green 
Bay  and  Fox  River  to  the  Mississippi,  and  with  insatiate 
avidity  roamed  in  pursuit  of  contest  over  the  whole  country, 
between  the  Wisconsin  and  the  upper  branches  of  the  Illinois. 
The  Shawanese  are  said  to  have  an  affinity  with  this  nation ; 
that  the  Kickapoos,  who  established  themselves  by  conquest  in 
the  north  of  Illinois,  are  but  a  branch  of  it,  is  demonstrated  by 
their  speech." 

Northwest  of  the  Sauks  and  Foxes,  and  west  of  the  Chippe- 

•  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  841.  t  Wem,  p.  242. 

Vol.  I.— I 


130 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


was,  bands  of  the  Sioux,  or  Dahcotas,  had  encamped  in  the 
prairies  east  of  the  Mississippi,  vagrants  between  the  head 
waters  of  Lake  Superior  and  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony.  They 
were  a  branch  of  the  great  family  which,  dwelling  for  the  most 
part  west  of  the  Mississippi  and  Red  River  of  the  north,  ex- 
tended  from  the  Saskatchawan  to  lands  south  of  the  Arkansas. 
Hennepin  was  among  them  in  his  expedition  to  the  north  in 
1680;  Joseph  Marest  and  another  Jesuit  visited  them  in  1687, 
and  again  in  1689.  There  seemed  to  be  n  hereditary  warfare 
between  them  and  the  Chippewas.  "  Like  other  Western  and 
Southern  tribes,  their  population  appears  of  late  to  have  in- 
creased." 

South  and  southwest  of  the  Shawanese  were  the  Chickasas, 
a  warlike  and  powerful  tribe  of  savages,  extending  from  the 
banks  of  the  Mississippi  eastward  to  the  Muscle  Shoals  of  Ten- 
nessee River.  These  tribes  were  visited  by  Marquette,  and 
again  by  La  Salle,  in  his  exploration  of  the  Lower  Mississippi. 
At  first  they  were  frieYids  of  the  French,  but  having  been  won 
to  the  English  interests  by  traders  and  emissaries  from  Caroli- 
na, they  became  the  most  constant  and  most  successful  ene- 
mies of  the  French  colonies  in  Louisiana. 

South  of  the  Chickasas  was  the  Natchez  tribe,  occupying  the 
country  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi,  between  the  Yazoo 
and  the  Pearl  River,  and  the  most  civilized  of  any  tribe  soen 
by  Iberville  in  Louisiana.  West  and  south  of  the  Natchez  was 
the  powerful  tribe  of  the  Choctas,  the  constant  friends  of  the 
early  French  colonies  on  the  Mississippi  and  Mobile  Rivers. 

Such  is  the  brief  outline  of  the  native  tribes  first  known  to 
the  early  French  colonies  in  Louisiana,  and  whose  friendship 
they  continued  to  preserve  in  a  remarkable  manner,  until  the 
close  of  their  dominion  on  the  Mississippi,  excepting  only  the 
Natchez  and  Chickasa  nations. 


iK  II. 

I  the 

head 

rhey 

most 

1,  ex- 

iiisas. 

•th  in 

1687, 

irfare 

n  and 

ve  in- 

ikasus, 
)m  the 
•f  Ten- 
te,  and 
issippi. 
en  won 
Caroli- 
ful  ene- 

^'ing  the 

Yazoo 

be  soen 

ez  was 

of  the 
ivers. 
lown  to 
[endship 
intil  the 

ily  the 


A.D.  1073.] 


VALLEY    or   TUB   MID8IH8IPPI. 


131 


CHAPTER  II. 

£XPLORATION   OF  THE  MISHIBHIPPI    RIVKR    DY   LA    8ALLB  :    HIS    COL- 
ONY   ON    TUB    COLORADO. A.D.   1073  TO  1606. 

Argument. — Character  ami  Kntcrpriio  of  La  Sallu.— His  Anibitinn  tn  complete  the  Ex- 
pluration  of  the  Miaiii«ippi.— His  Plans  approved  liy  M.  Talon,  Intcndant  of  New 
France.— La  Hallu  laila  tor  Kuropo. — llocoivea  the  King's  Patronage. — Hetunis  to 
Cannda. — Repairs  to  Fort  Fruntonae  and  the  Western  Lakes  in  l(i78.— Winters  on 
the  Niagara,  and  builds  the  Qriffm  in  1670.— Proceeds  to  Uroen  Bay  and  freights  the 
OrilFon. — Visits  the  Minmison  SV  Joseph's  Iti''or. — Loss  of  the  Orifliiu  and  Cargo. — 
Builds  F.  '.t  Miami  ia  lOfeo.— Biiiiit  I  •>  .  Cruve  Coaur.- DilHculties  with  Indians.— 
Mutiny  among  his  M.''.i. — M-Ut-j  i)ailli<<(  'aid  Indians  reconciled. — Father  Henne- 
pin ti'',i  to  exri«»e  tof;  '^iissusij  pi.  -  I  x  Halle  returns  to  Fort  Frontunac.  —  Hock 
Fort  built  on  rJ  o  iUiiirik.-  I'.xtout  )f  Hennepin's  Explorations  in  1681.— tiubse(|uent- 
ly  he  explores  tbj  Vi;<(i.if;.ippi  &t  low  as  the  A'  kansas. — La  Salle  devotes  his  whole 
Energy  to  retrieve  ^lir  Fonuue.  —  Prepares  for  a  'inol  Exploration  of  the  Hiver  to 
the  Sea. — Ho  cii^rn  'Ju:  AlF..'<iiii)i\ipi,  Fobriary  v,  iOa:?  --He  explores  il  to  the  tJea, 
and  visits  uumer  jt«  Tribes  .i»'  I'udi.inH. — T  ilMif"  foantl  Pnsiicstiiui  -.if  Lower  Louisi- 
ana.— Retnnis  >j\  C&uaiia  •  Bail:*  to  K".i>,j-'i  c.  Oitobev,  n:*^.—  }  \  Paris,  organizes  a 
Colony  for  '.he  Mii.'&'.ijip.  —  ."^H'lfi  fiwra  llicholw  witN  (in  Hy'iny,  July  34,  1684. — 
CharactiT  ami  Nur.i'c-.f  if  ch'j  Colony;  —  Tu'?'0>.'«  -''1  'nuwt'i' .'  Voyage.  —  Sails 
West  of  the,  .'Jijikissippi,  aw'  ;•  comp-.-ll!  1  .x  lu'id  ;.;  VVfStprn  Tejtus. — Unavailing 
Searches  for  tl".'  Mississip:;'. — licilils  'For,  I't.  t,Li.n»"  on  the  '■'Jurulo,  and  takes 
formal  Possession  of  Tcxok  :.»  Jd"*  ■.  •-^>t,pi<>rr,'i.(»  C.'iidhJop  .if  ii '.;  .>'.Iji}.  — La  Salle 
finally  detorminen  *o  ni'-^h  the  i''mois  wid  Cnvtada  by  Land,  ui  ir.iC— Axuftssinated 
near  the  Trinity  Itivor.-  The  K<r\airn'.r  of  th':  (  oU<ny  on  (;ifi|i:)vard,  and  some 
reach  the  Illinois.— Sptnian?;!  sourch  fur  Hie  Freurd  Co  on\  ui  vai.a.  m  I6i?9. — Illinoia 
Country  occupied  by  Freud*  oiler  La  Sc'Io'f  Xtrpaiture.— Wij-k  in  Canada  with  the 
Iroquois  and  E:  if'.isii. — The  Ccfnizotion  of  Lower  L  JuiRlui::.  viefo.Tod  until  the  Year 
1698. 

[A.D.  1073.]  Taie  fiifl  ebullition  o.f  py  in  New  France,  af- 
ter the  discovery  of  the  great  river  of  thv;  West  by  Father 
Marquette  and  M.  Joliet,  soon  subsiJled.  The  colonial  govern- 
ment manifested  but  little  interest  in  jtros-jcuting  the  discovery 
for  five  yt  ars,  At  length  u  private  individual  undertook  to  com- 
plete the  e:cpiorala  K  'o  the  sea.  This  individual  was  Monsieur 
la  Salle,  ii  uiitive  o)  Rou3n  in  Normandy.  He  had  been  a 
man  of  loiton<  and  of  fortune,  but  had  renounced  his  patrimony 
and  ioiued  the  order  of  Jesuits.  "After  profiting  by  the  disci- 
[.*ind  of  their  schools,  and  obtaining  their  praise  for  purity  and 
diligence,  he  had  taken  his  discharge  of  the  fraternity,  and  with 
no  companions  but  poverty  and  a  boundless  spirit  of  enter- 
prise," he  came  to  New  France  in  quest  of  fame  and  fortune.* 

*  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  163. 


132 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  II. 


At  first  he  established  himself  as  a  fur  trader  at  La  Chine,  near 
Montreal.  But  he  was  ready  and  willing  to  engage  in  any 
enterprise  that  would  gratify  his  ambition  and  reward  his  toil. 
He  resolved  to  prosecute  the  discovery  and  exploration  of  the 
Mississippi  as  an  enterprise  worthy  of  his  ambition.  He  en- 
tertained the  belief  advanced  by  Father  Marquette,  that  some 
of  the  western  tributaries  of  the  great  river  would  afford  a 
direct  route  to  the  South  Sea,  and  thence  to  China.  This 
subject  still  was  agitated  in  Europe,  and  all  were  interested 
in  knowing  the  fact.  To  avoid  a  long  and  dangerous  voy- 
age around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  or  of  Cape  Horn,  was 
surely  an  object  of  deep  concern  to  the  commercial  world. 
La  Salle  was  a  man  of  extraordinary  courage  and  persever- 
ance, and  hence  was  well  adapted  for  the  exploration  of  remote 
and  unknown  regions.  M.  Joutel  declares  "  his  constancy  and 
courage,  his  extraordinary  knowledge  in  the  arts  and  sciences, 
rendered  him  fit  for  any  thing ;  and  besides  this,  he  possessed 
an  indefatigable  body,  which  made  him  surmount  all  difficul- 
ties." 

[A.D.  1678.]  Such  was  the  man  who  was  eager  to  enter 
upon  the  new  enterprise  of  exploring  the  "  great  river"  to  its 
mouth,  which  he  believed  must  be  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  He 
communicated  his  views  lo  the  Count  de  Frontenac,  then  gov- 
ernor of  New  France.  He  urged  upon  him  the  propriety  of 
sending  colonies  westward,  and  of  protecting  them  by  adequate 
fortifications  against  the  hostilities  of  the  Indians.  He  por- 
trayed, with  all  the  ardor  of  his  temperament,  the  advantages 
that  would  result  from  such  a  policy ;  that  it  would  not  only 
benefit  and  strengthen  New  France,  but  also  aggrandize  France 
herself.  The  count  readily  entered  into  all  his  views,  and  ap- 
proved all  his  plans  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  designs. 
Bui  the  execution  of  them  requir*^d  heavy  disbursements,  which 
the  provincial  authorities  could  not  order.  He  resolved,  there- 
fore, to  send  La  Salle  to  France,  that  iie  might  there  explain 
his  views  and  advocate  his  plans  before  the  court.  La  Salle 
arrived  in  France,  and  lost  no  time  in  presenting  himself  before 
the  minister.  He  was  fortunate,  and  received  a  favorable  au- 
dience. Letters  of  nobility  were  granted  by  the  king,  with 
authority  to  prosecute  his  projected  discoveries.  He  was  ap- 
pointed proprietor  and  commandant  of  Fort  Cataracoui,  after- 
ward called  Frontenac,  near  the  eastern  extremity  of  Lake 


A.D.  1678.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


133 


Frontenac,  or  Ontario,  and  upon  the  present  site  of  Kingston. 
Yet  no  money  was  appropriated ;  for  this  he  was  to  depend 
upon  his  own  resources  and  industry.* 

Having  engaged  the  aid  of  the  ChevaUer  de  Tonti,  and  about 
thirty  colonists,  inchiding  several  mechanics,  he  set  sail  from 
France  for  the  St.  Lawrence.  After  a  prosperous  voyage,  he 
arrived  at  Quebec  on  the  25th  of  September,  1678.  Thence 
he  proceeded  to  Fort  Frontenac.  The  fort  was  neglected  and 
dismantled.  The  first  labor  was  to  rebuild  the  works  and 
place  the  whole  in  a  proper  military  condition.f  Here  he  re- 
mained some  weeks,  making  preparations  for  his  tour  to  the 
Far  West.  In  all  his  preparations  and  plans,  he  evinced  such 
business-like  dispatch,  and  such  prompt  enterprise  and  undaunt- 
ed firmness,  that  the  colonial  government  became  more  and 
more  convinced  that  he  possessed  the  proper  spirit  and  genius 
for  the  arduous  undertaking.  "  He  sent  forward  men  to  pre- 
|)are  the  minds  of  the  remote  tribes  for  his  coming,  by  well- 
chosen  words  and  gifts." 

A  barque  of  ten  tons  having  been  built.  La  Salle  and  his 
party  left  Fort  Frontenac  on  the  18th  of  November,  1678,  upon 
his  Western  tour.  For  the  means  of  defraying  the  expenses  of 
the  expedition,  his  principal  dependence  was  upon  his  success 
in  trading  with  the  Indians.  He  had  supplied  himself  with  a 
large  amount  of  goods  and  articles  adapted  to  the  Indian  trade, 
which  he  expected  to  barter  for  rich  furs  and  skins.  After  a 
tedious  and  dangerous  voyage  in  that  tempestuous  season,  they 
reached  the  western  extremity  of  Lake  Frontenac.  The  win- 
ter had  now  set  in  with  great  severity,  and  he  was  compelled 
to  go  into  winter-quarters  with  his  small  party  near  the  Falls 
of  Niagara.  The  delay  here  was  turned  to  advantage.  Dur- 
ing the  winter,  he  was  constantly  employed  in  making  further 
provision  for  the  expedition.  Exploring  parties,  under  the 
Chevalier  de  Tonti,  were  sent  to  reconnoiter  the  country,  to 
conciliate  the  Indians,  to  open  a  friendly  intercourse  with  them, 
nnd  to  make  further  inquiries  of  the  route  to  the  Mississippi. 
La  Salle  himself  returned  to  Fort  Frontenac  for  an  additional 
supply  of  provisions,  goods,  and  ammunition.  He  also  brought 
with  him,  the  following  spring,  three  recollet  monks,  to  adminis- 
ter to  the  spiritual  wants  of  his  people,  and  to  aid  in  the  enter- 
prise.    One  of  these  was  *'  Father  Louis  Hennepin,  a  Francis- 

*  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  83.  t  Idem,  p.  85,  66. 


184 


IIIHTilUY    i>V    Till'. 


[iKtoK    II. 


('Mil  (Viiir.  n  iiiiiii  liill  of  aiiiliitinii  tin-  <liK(-iiV(M'i(>H  iiiiil  linno ; 
itiiriiijU'.  Iinrily.  (Mior^rlif,  viiiti,  iiikI  H(<lt-(>\!i,ir^(>i'iitin^  iiIiiimhI  to 
niiwiiicss."  \lv  WiiH  nioio  iiirliiir<l  (o  |iriiiiMtlo  IiIh  own  1)11110 
tor  grciit  iliM'tiN  tluiii  to  lulvuiit'c  tli<«  ciiiiHr  «it  tnilli.  Iln  IiikI 
Ikhm)  u  iiiiHHioimiy  anions  llir  liitliniin  iilioiit  Vori  rrontciiac  ; 
he  had  luiulo  ti'oi|iuMit  viHitH  uiiion^  ihi*  lt-o((iioi«<.  south  ot'  Lnko 
Oiitnrio,  aiitl  011  tho  HoiirroH  ot°  iho  AHc^haiiy,  ami  hiiil  Icatiiod 
nuirh  ot' liuliaii  ('haractoi*  aiul  fiHtoniH. 

[A.l>.  nn!>.]  Tin*  hanjiM'  luou^hl  tVtnn  I'ort  l''ionl««iuir 
I'ouhi  iittt  lio  takoii  over  iho  FallH  of  [Nlia^nra  :  orconrw;  aiioth- 
iM'  inuHl  ho  hiiill  altovo  thoni.  Tho  "(irillim,"  ot  nixly  toim. 
v>nn  houiiii  upon  Luko  I'liio,  iioiir  tho  mouth  of  tho  'roiiiiowaii- 
to  Crook,  hut  it  roquirod  six  inoiithH  (or  itH  roiu|ilotioii.  During 
thiw  tinio  l<ii  SaUo  was  not  idh*.  llo  Hoiit  oxphu'iii^  partioH 
into  tho  (iitVoroiit  trihos  ot'  Indians  soutli  and  west  ot'lho  hikoH, 
to  inako  urraii^onionts  tor  oolhM*lin^  liirs  and  oponing  u  protit- 
ahlo  trado.  Fathor  llonnopin  ])ortornu<d  his  part  !>y  priMirh- 
in^  and  ooiu'ihatini;  tho  nativos,  and  I ty  gaining;  inl'ornintion  of 
tho  oonnlry.  At  UMii;th.  on  tho  sovonth  of  August,  l(t7tt,  tho 
CiritVon  was  tinishod,  and  tho  oxpodition  sot  sail  for  tho  Slniits 
«)f  iNlaokinao.  Saihni;  ovor  hako  Krio  ami  holwocn  iho  verdant 
isloH  of  tho  inajoslio  Hotroit,  thoy  arrived  on  (he  !2Nth,  in  health 
and  fino  spirits.*  Hero  thoy  roiuained  two  weeks,  while  La 
ISullo  was  luakini;  his  irrangoiuonts  and  oolloetini,'  furs.  Thoy 
sailed  fr«>in  the  straits  ahonl  tho  luiddlo  of  Sopteinhor,  and  on 
tho  eighth  of  tVtohor  thoy  landed  in  the  Hay  of  tho  Puuiits,  or 
tiroen  Hay.  Here  La  Salle,  having  eoinpleted  tho  stock  tor  a 
('arm>,  sent  thoCJritVon  hack  \o  Lake  J'irio,  richly  froighted  with 
t'urs  and  peltries,  with  instructions  to  meet  him  on  its  return  at 
the  mouth  of  tho  river  of  tho  Miainis,  the  present  St.  Joseph's 
of  Michigan. 

In  the  mean  time,  he  proceeded  by  land  through  the  tribes 
south  ofCireen  Hay,  and  thence  around  to  the  Miami  Indians,  on 
the  southeast  of  tho  lake.  Hero  he  entered  into  engagements 
tor  opening  a  trade  with  tho  Mtamis  of  the  River  St.  .loseph. 

He  obtained  permission  of  them  to  erect  u  stockade  fort  an<l 
a  trading-post  on  that  river,  near  its  entrance  into  Jiako  Michi- 
gan. This  was  known  at'lervvard  as  the  Fort  of  the  Miamis; 
tor  the  use  of  which, he  ox|»ected  a  supply  «»f  goods  from  Lake 
Erie  upon  the  return  of  the  tirilUm  in  December  following. 

*  HatirmtVs  I'.  Statea,  vol.  iii.,  ji.  lii'i. 


A.n.  lOSO.j 


VAI.I.nV    or    TIIR    MIHHIHHII'I'f. 


18ff 


linn  Im>  wiiitiMl  iin|iiiti(Mitly  for  llio  rntiirii  of  llio  (friHoii.  At. 
Irii^lli  DrriMiilxM  rniiHS  y(il  nothing  whh  lieiinl  oC  llio  vchhi*!. 
liti  Siillo  rodNtril  out.  in  Hcnrrli  of  linr,  uiid  Ni^t.  np  Ikmicoiih  iioiir 
lli(«  nIioio  to  (liiTfl.  Ihm"  r.oniHo.  Slill  llm  V(ihh<>I  did  iM»t  nrrivn, 
iiiid  Hii|i|>li('H  of  nil  liiiidH  vvcio  Ix^^iiiiiin^  to  (nil.  I  In  hilt  a 
murrirton  of  I(mi  iiumi  in  llir  l''ort  iVIianii,  with  inHtrnctions  lor  tlio 
coniniandiu'  of  (Ih>  ( •ritlon  upon  lirr  nrrjv  J.*  With  tlin  rrrnnin- 
doi-  o,'  liiH  lorcr,  ronHistin^  ni'  tliiiiy-ronr  fncn,  irudndinj^  th« 
('iiuvalirr  do  Tonli,  ho  Hot  ont  tor  tho  lllinoiH  llivor.  Whiln 
liiniHrir  and  Nonio  othorH  piiHHod  over  hy  land,  tho  rcMnaindnr 
oftlio  party,  with  IIh^  ImmiIh  ntid  c.anooH,  pnddlod  np  Iho  St.  Jo- 
HOph'N  lljvor  for  ("oim"  dayH,  and  tluMi  hy  a  porfaj^o  ontHHod  over 
lo  tln!  luNid  hrancli  oftho  Kankakoo  Kivor,  which  tlioy  deHrrnd- 
(mI  to  Iho  Illinois.  'IMionr.n  tho  wlxdo  party  doH(*.ondod  that 
pla«Md  rivor  until  thoy  canio  to  a  lar^n  Indian  vilhif^o,  which 
thoy  HiippoHod  to  ho  ono  hnndrod  nnd  fifty  niilos  from  tlio  Mis- 
HiHsippi.  Tho  Indiana  worn  kind  and  hoM|)itahlo  ;  thoy  suppli- 
ed tho  party  ahundnntly  with  corn  and  rnotitH.  ThiH  village 
wiiN  noiu*  tho  ox|>anHion  of  tho  Illinois  Kivor,  known  as  Lako 
I'ooria,  where  l''ort  St.  liC>uis  was  aftorward  hiiilt. 

It  w;is  now  ahout  ('hristuias  ;  and  tho  party  procoo.dod  ahout 
sixty  miles  further  <lown  the  river,  where  thoy  were  well  re- 
(!uived  hy  tho  Indiims.  Helievin^  this  a  f^ood  point  for  a  trad- 
in^-post,  La  Sallo  ohtained  permission  to  huild  a  fort.  He  ac- 
conlin^ly  remained  to  c(»mpleto  the  w»»i'k.  It  was  n(»w  late  in 
Januiiry,  1(5N(),  when  ho  fust  rec»iive<l  intelli^'onco  from  tho 
CriU'on.  Sho  had  hoeit  wrisckod  <»n  tlio  v»»ya^o  home,  and  all 
his  rich  car^o  was  lost.  This  circumstance,  together  with  the 
appoaran<^o  of  discontent  ntnon^  his  men,  forohoding  mutiny, 
so  dispelled  his  hr>peH  and  depressed  his  spirits,  that  he  called 
tho  fort  "(Jrove  (J<eur,"  or  Hroken  Ileart.f 

[A.D.  1080.]  Up  to  this  time,  his  undertaking,  <ilthr)U^h  ar- 
duous, appeared  to  he  pros|)erous.  He  hati  extended  his  ex- 
plorations westward  fifteen  hundred  mileH  hoyond  tho  settle- 
ments. The  country  had  heen  examined,  forts  were  erected, 
and  the  friondship  of  tho  savages  had  heen  secured.  Hut  now 
a  dark  cloud  overspread  his  prospects.  His  men  appearcfl 
worn  out  and  disgusted  with  an  expedition  which  had  already 
engaged  them  more  than  a  year ;  the  issue  still  appeared  to 
them  hazardous,  or  at  least  uncertain.     They  were  not  willing 

*  Mortui's  LouiaianB,  vol.  i.,  p.  H9,  69.  t  Irlum. 


136 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


to  spend  their  lives  in  a  deep  wilderness,  among  savages,  with- 
out guides,  and  often  without  food.  This  dissatisfaction  at 
length  broke  out  into  open  murmurs  against  the  projector  of 
the  expedition,  the  author  of  all  their  troubles,  who  had  led 
them  into  a  fatiguing,  perilous,  and,  to  them,  an  apparently 
useless  ramble,  remote  from  civilization  and  all  the  endear- 
ments of  social  life. 

Nothing  escaped  the  quick  penetration  of  La  Salle.*  He 
had  soon  perceived  that  discontent  and  mischief  were  fomented 
among  his  men ;  that  a  storm  was  impending,  and  must  be 
calmed.  He  went  into  the  midst  of  them ;  he  assured  them 
of  good  treatment,  and  ultimate  success ;  he  placed  before 
them  the  hope  of  glory  and  wealth ;  he  pointed  them  to  the 
successful  example  of  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico  and  Peru ;  but 
they  were  not  so  easily  appeased.  The  mutineers  represent- 
ed to  their  comrades  how  idle  it  was  to  continue  slaves  to  the 
caprice  and  dupes  to  the  idle  visions  and  imaginary  hopes  of 
leader  who  seemed  to  consider  the  dangers  already  passed 
only  as  pledges  which  demanded  still  greater  sacrifices  from 
them. 

They  asked  whether  they  could  expect  any  other  reward 
for  their  protracted  slavery  than  misery  and  indigence.  What 
could  be  expected,  at  the  end  of  a  ramble  almost  to  the  con- 
fines of  the  earth,  and  to  inaccessible  seas,  but  to  be  obliged 
to  return  poorer  and  more  miserable  than  when  they  first  set 
out  ?  They  said  the  only  means  of  avoiding  the  impending 
calamity  was  to  return  while  they  had  sufficient  strength,  to 
part  from  a  man  who  sought  their  ruin  and  his  own,  and  to 
abandon  him  to  his  laborious  and  useless  discoveries.  They 
adverted  to  the  difficulty  of  return  when  their  leader,  by  his 
intelligence,  influence,  and  intrigues,  should  have  secured  the 
means  of  apprehending  and  punishing  them  as  deserters,  and 
that  it  would  be  impossible  to  proceed  without  provisions  or 
resources  of  any  kind.  It  was  suggested  to  cut  the  tree  up  by 
the  roots,  and  to  end  their  misery  by  the  death  of  its  author, 
and  that  thus  they  might  avail  themselves  of  the  fruits  of  their 

*  It  may  be  woU  hero  to  remark,  that  Maitin,  iii  the  whole  of  La  Salle's  explora- 
tions, discoveries,  and  trade  among  the  Western  tribes,  is  negligent  of  dates ;  places 
transactions,  generally,  one  year  earlier  than  they  really  transpired.  Thus,  ho  makes 
La  Salle's  first  voyage  down  the  Mississippi  to  take  place  in  the  year  1681,  whereas 
Bancrofl;  establishes  tlie  tune  to  be  in  tlio  spring  of  1683.  Sec  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  66, 
and  on  to  p.  103. 


A.D.  1680.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


137 


explora- 

;b;  places 

he  makes 

whereas 

.  i.,  p.  eo, 


own  labor  and  fatigues.  Those  who  were  in  favor  of  such 
steps  were  not  in  sufficient  number  to  eflect  their  object. 
They,  however,  determined  to  endeavor  to  induce  the  Indians 
to  rise  against  La  Salle,  hoping  that  they  might  reap  the  ad- 
vantage to  be  derived  from  his  murder  without  appearing  to 
have  participated  in  the  crime.* 

The  leaders  of  the  mutineers,  approaching  the  natives  with 
apparent  concern  and  confidence,  said  that,  grateful  for  their 
hospitality  heretofore  extended,  they  were  alarmed  at  the  dan- 
ger which  threatened  them ;  that  La  Salle  had  entered  into 
strong  engagements  with  the  Iroquois,  their  greatest  enemies ; 
that  he  had  advanced  into  their  country  now  to  ascertain  their 
strength,  to  build  a  fort,  and  to  keep  them  in  subjection ;  that,  in 
his  meditated  return  to  Fort  Frontenac,  he  had  no  other  object 
than  ift  convey  to  the  Iroquois  the  information  he  had  gained,  and 
to  invite  them  tO  make  a  rapid  irruption  into  the  country,  while 
his  force  was  among  them  to  co-operate  with  the  Iroquois.f 

The  Indians,  of  course>  attached  much  truth  to  the  allega- 
tions of  these  men.  La  Salle  instantly  discovered  a  change 
of  conduct  in  the  Indians,  but  he  knew  not  the  cause.  He  at 
length  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  declaration  of  the  cause  of 
their  cold  reserve.  After  communicating  his  reasons  for  sus- 
pecting perfiay  in  some  of  his  men,  he  showed  how  im{)Ossible 
it  was  that  he  could  be  connected  with  the  Iroquois ;  that  he 
considered  that  nation  as  perfidious,  lawless,  cruel,  revengeful, 
and  thirsting  for  human  blood ;  and,  as  such,  that  neither  credit 
nor  safety  v/ould  dictate  such  an  alliance  with  those  brutal 
savages  ;  and,  moreover,  that  he  had  frankly  announced  his 
views  to  the  Illinois  on  his  first  arrival  among  thein  ;  t  hat  the 
smallness  of  his  force  precluded  the  belief  of  an  intention  to 
subdue  any  tribe.  The  open  and  ingenuous  calmness  with 
which  he  spoke  gained  him  credence,  and  the  impression  pre- 
viously made  by  the  mutineers  appeared  to  be  entirely  eilaced 
from  the  minds  of  the  Indians.^ 

This  success,  however,  was  of  short  duration.  An  emis- 
sary had  been  sent  from  a  neighboring  tribe,  the  Mascotins,  se- 
cretly, to  the  Illinois,  to  stir  them  up  against  La  Salle  and  his 
party. 

By  great  art,  he  had  nearly  convinced  them  that  La  Salle 


*  Martin's  Loaiaiaiia,  vol.  i.,  p.  90-91. 
t  Idem,  p.  93-94. 


t  Idem,  p.  93-93. 


138 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


was  in  alliance  with  the  Iroqnois,  and  almost  succeeded  in  his 
efforts  to  induce  the  Illinois  to  cut  off  the  whole  party.  The 
suggestions  of  this  emissary,  corresponding  with  the  rumors 
circulated  by  the  disaffected  of  his  own  party,  had  well-nigh 
effected  his  destruction.  The  suspicions  which  La  Salle,  by 
his  candor  and  address,  had  allayed,  were  suddenly  revived, 
and  the  chiefs  spent  the  ni^ht  in  deliberation.  In  the  morning, 
all  the  delusory  hopes  he  had  entertained  on  the  apparent  re- 
turn of  confidence  were  dispelled  on  his  perceiving  the  cold 
reserve  of  the  chiefs  and  the  unconcealed  distrust  and  indigna- 
tion of  others.  He  vainly  endeavored  to  discover  the  immedi- 
ate cause  of  the  change,  and  began  to  think  of  the  propriety 
of  intrenching  his  party  in  the  fort.  Alarmed  and  surprised, 
and  unable  to  remain  in  suspense,  he  boldly  advanced  into  the 
midst  of  the  Indians,  who  were  gathered  into  small  groups, 
and  speaking  their  language  sufficiently  well  to  be  understood, 
he  demanded  the  cause  of  the  coolness  and  distrust  now  seen 
on  their  brows.  He  said  they  had  parted  on  the  preceding 
evening  in  peace  and  friendship,  and  now  he  found  them  arm- 
ed, and  some  of  them  ready  to  fall  upon  him ;  that  he  was 
naked  and  unarmed  in  the  midst  of  them,  a  willing  and  ready 
sacrifice  to  their  vengeance,  if  he  could  be  convicted  of  any 
designs  against  them.  •  " 

Moved  by  his  open  and  undaunted  demeanor,  the  Indians 
pointed  to  the  deputy  of  the  Mascotins,  who  had  been  sent  to 
apprise  them  of  his  schemes  and  his  connection  with  their  ene- 
mies. Rushing  boldly  toward  him.  La  Salle,  in  an  imperious 
tone,  demanded  what  evidence  or  reason  existed  for  this  al- 
leged connection.  The  Mascotin  coldly  replied  that,  in  cir- 
cumstances where  the  safety  of  a  nation  was  concerned,  full 
evidence  was  not  always  required  to  convict  suspicious  char- 
acters ;  that  the  smallest  circumstances  often  justified  precau- 
tions ;  and  as  the  address  of  the  turbulent  and  seditious  con- 
sisted in  dissembling  their  schemes,  the  duty  of  the  chiefs  con- 
sisted in  adopting  measures  to  prevent  their  success ;  that,  in 
the  present  case,  his  past  negotiation  or  trade  with  the  Iro- 
quois, his  intended  return  to  Fort  Frontenac,  and  the  fort  he 
had  just  built,  were  sufficient  presumptions  to  induce  the  Illi- 
nois to  apprehend  danger,  and  to  take  the  steps  necessary  to 
avoid  being  taken  in  the  snare  he  seemed  to  have  prepared. 
By  a  display  of  great  address  and  firmness.  La  Salle  finally 


A.D. 


1680.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISMIPPL 


139 


gave  sufficient  assurance  that  he  entertained  no  hostile  designs 
against  them,  and  that  he  had  no  such  connection  with  the  Iro- 
quois as  ought  to  prejudice  the  Illinois  against  him. 

A  good  understanding  with  tlie  Indians  was  at  length  re- 
stored, and  his  own  men  became  so  far  reconciled  that  they 
promised  to  remain  at  the  fort  on  duty,  while  an  exploring 
party  should  advance  toward  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi. 
Still  they  were  inclined  to  defeat  the  object  of  this  expedition, 
and  subsequently  sought  occasion  to  take  off  the  leaders  of  it 
by  poison  placed  in  their  food ;  but  the  attempt  was  detected 
before  any  fatal  effects  were  produced,  and  thus  they  failed  to 
accomplish  their  object. 

Having  arranged  the  expedition  for  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
La  Salle,  in  the  month  of  March,  with  a  sack  of  parched  corn, 
a  musket,  a  shot-pouch  and  powder-horn,  for  defense  and  to 
procure  food,  a  blanket,  and  deer-skins  for  moccasins,  with 
three  companions,  set  out  on  foot  for  Fort  Frontenac,  trudging 
through  melting  snows  and  marshes,  through  thickets  and  for- 
ests, upon  the  ridge  which  divides  the  waters  of  the  Ohio  from 
those  of  the  lakes.* 

The  exploring  party  for  the  Mississippi  consisted  of  Father 
Louis  Hennepin,  M.  Dugay,  and  six  other  Frenchmen,  as  oars- 
men and  woodsmen.  Leaving  Fort  Crcve  Coeur  on  the  28th 
of  February,  they  descended  the  Illinois  in  the  midst  of  win- 
ter. For  ten  days  they  were  detained  at  the  mouth  by  float- 
ing ice  in  the  Mississippi,  after  which  they  proceeded  to  ascend 
the  river.  They  continued  their  voyage  in  their  canoes  more 
than  eight  hundred  miles,  when  their  progress  was  arrested  by 
great  falls  in  the  river,  which  were  named  by  the  Franciscan 
the  ♦'  Falls  of  St.  Anthony,"  in  honor  of  his  patron  saint,  St. 
Anthony  of  Padua.  On  a  tree  near  the  cataract,  he  engraved 
the  cross  and  the  arms  of  France.  For  several  weeks  the  par- 
ty rambled  through  the  regions  above  the  falls,  exploring  the 
country  and  its  rivers,  but  never  reaching  the  real  sources  of 
the  great  river,  as  Hennepin  falsely  affirmed.  The  whole  par- 
ty, during  their  sojourn  in  these  parts,  was  held  by  the  Sioux 
in  a  short  captivity,  from  which  they  at  length  escaped.  De- 
scending the  Mississippi  to  the  mouth  of  the  Wisconsin,  Hen- 
nepin and  his  companions  returned  by  way  of  the  Wisconsin 
and  Fox  Rivers  to  the  French  mission  at  Green  Bay.f 

.      *  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  16G.  f  Idem,  p.  1G7. 


140 


IIIHTOKY    OF   THE 


[llOOK    II. 


Towiinl  Iho  i^loso  of  summer,  Father  ITennepin,  dcHiroiis  of 
nccomplisliing  the  whole  of  L;i  Salle's  wishes,  with  u  party  of 
five  men  set  out  on  a  voya^'e  of  ex|)lorati<m  down  the  river, 
vainly  expecting  to  trace  and  to  examine  the  country  to  the  sea. 
Entering  the  Mississippi  a^ain  l»y  way  of  the  Wisconsin,  the 
party  descended,  oci^asionally  paddling  their  cmnoes,  and  again 
floating  with  the  current,  until  they  reached  the  mouth  of  the 
Arkansas  River,  the  point  formerly  reache<l  hy  Marquette  and 
Jolict.  Hero  it  was  ascertained  from  the  Indians  that  the  dis- 
tance to  the  sea  was  still  very  great — much  greater  than  had 
hccn  anticipated.  Father  lIenno])in  deemed  it  best  to  return 
to  the  Illinois,  and  thence  to  Fort  Ocve  ('uuir.  Late  in  the 
autumn  he  reached  the  posts  upon  the  Upper  Illinois. 

This  was  the  extent  of  Father  Hennepin's  discoveries  on  the 
Mississippi ;  yet,  after  the  death  of  La  Salle,  he  endeavored  to 
claim  the  principal  credit  of  the  explorations  to  the  sea.*  The 
account  of  his  voyage  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  ])uhlish- 
ed  in  London  in  KMM),  was  a  manifest  fiction,  and  the  result  of 
British  intrigue  with  the  Franciscan.  The  whole  distance  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas  to  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony  is  but 
little  short  of  fifteen  hundred  miles.  Over  this  distance  Hen- 
nepin had  passed  twice,  an  entire  distance  of  nearly  three  thou- 
sand miles,  upon  a  vast,  unknown  river,  and  among  unknown 
savage  tribes.  This  was  truly  an  enterprise  worthy  of  La 
Salle  himself;  and,  after  all  fair  allowance  for  Father  Henne- 
pin's propensity  to  exaggerate,  he  is  still  entitled  to  our  admi- 
ration and  respect  for  his  enterprise  and  perseverance. 

During  the  exploring  voyage  of  Hennepin  and  M.  Dugay, 


*  Ilcmicpiii,  nilor  Hub  expedition,  rotirvd  to  ('anada,  and  aonn  afterward  ho  aet  anil 
lor  Franre.  Ho  there  published  a  splendid  account  of  the  newly-diacovored  <-(mntry  of 
"  Louisiana,"  whicli  ho  so  callcfl  in  honor  of  Louis  XIV.  This  work  he  dedicated  to 
the  French  minister,  Colbert.  It  contained  an  account  of  his  <li8coveries  under  La 
8alle,  in  which  he  makes  no  claim  to  have  descended  tho  river  lower  than  the  Arkan- 
sas. Several  years  subse<iuently,  not  incetini,'  with  that  patrona^'o  wliich  he  expctcted 
iu  France,  he  visited  England,  and  was  8(M)n  taken  into  the  pay  of  King  William,  who 
(leelared  "that  ho  would  leap  over  twent>°  stumbling-blocks"  to  accomplish  his  design! 
in  America.  The  King  of  England  desired  to  set  up  a  claim  to  tho  discovery  of  tho 
Mississippi,  and  to  the  whole  of  Louisiana,  tluvugh  Father  Hennepin's  discoveries.  Ho 
tlicrefure  induced  him  to  write  a  rteiv  account  of  his  explorations,  and  so  nuxlify  its  de- 
tails as  to  favor  the  pretensions  of  the  English  king.  This  account  was  published  in 
London  in  lOUU.  It  is  in  this  that  he  first  claims  to  have  explored  tlio  river  to  its 
mouth.  The  whole  narrative,  in  this  respect,  bears  evidence  of  its  own  falseness,  and 
witli  the  French  procured  for  him  tho  title  of  "  tho  great  liur."  See  Martin's  Louisi- 
ana, vol.  i.  Also,  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  Iti7.  Stoddort's 
Sketches  of  Looifiana,  p.  16. 


A.u.  1080.] 


VAI.I.KV    OF    TIIF.  MIHHIHHII'I'I. 


141 


Ln  tSiillo  WHS  hiiHily  engaged  in  visiting  and  repairing  liis  forts, 
niitl  ill  hringiii^  forwunl  HupplicH  of  ^oo<1h  and  aminiinition  t<» 
his  trading-posts.  His  visits  extended  likewise  to  the  trihcs 
west  and  south  of  Luke  Mi<'.hijran,and  sfiiith  of  Krie.  lie  knew 
it  was  all-important  to  keep  up  a  good  understanding  with 
these  numerous  tribes,  lest  all  might  he  lost  hy  the  hostility 
which  hud  already  been  partially  excited  against  him. 

In  the  moan  time,  soon  after  the  departure  of  Hennepin's  par- 
ty in  Fehruury,  La  Salle  liad  placed  the  (!hevnlier  de  Tonti  in 
conunandat  FortdreveCceur,  wiM-,  instructions  to  fortify  "Rock 
Fort,"  on  the  Illinois,  diu'ing  his  »ronteinplated  absence  at  Fort 
Frontenac.  The  point  to  ho  thus  fortified  was  a  partially  iso- 
late«l  '*  clifT,  rising  two  hundred  feet  al)ovo  the  river,  which 
flows  near  its  base,  in  the  center  of  a  lovely  country  of  verdant 
prairies,  bordered  by  distant  slopes,  richly  tufted  with  f)ak  and 
black  walnut,  and  the  noblest  trees  of  the  American  forest." 
This  rocky  eminence  muy  now  be  seen,  near  the  northern  bank, 
rising  above  the  beautiful  plain,  through  which  the  Illinois  flows, 
and  within  four  miles  l>elow  the  mouth  of  Fox  Kiver.  This 
spot,  near  five  miles  below  the  town  of  Ottawa,  a  few  years 
since  was  selected  by  some  enterprising  Yankees  as  the  site  of 
a  town,  which  they  designated  with  the  uppropriate  name  of 
"  Gibraltar ;"  but  it  remains  yet,  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  La 
Salle,  only  an  impregnable  site  for  a  fortress.  La  Salle,  com- 
pelled by  necessity,  determined  to  defer  the  further  exploration 
of  the  great  river  until  he  could  retrieve  his  former  losses,  re- 
store confnlence  and  authority  among  his  men,  and  induce  a 
state  of  friendship  among  the  Indians.  To  this  important  end 
he  resolved  to  devote  his  energies  and  his  undivided  attention. 
His  debts  were  pressing,  and  as  yet  he  had  realized  nothing, 
after  great  outlays  and  great  expenses,  besides  the  loss  of  two 
years  spent  in  privation  and  toil. 

After  a  long  and  toilsome  journey,  visiting  the  Iroquois  na- 
tions in  his  route,  he  arrived  at  Fort  Frontenac  in  .Tune,  after 
having  established  amicable  relations  with  the  western  portion 
of  this  confederacy.  The  remainder  of  the  summer  was  spent 
in  conducting  his  trading  operations,  and  in  extending  his  in- 
fluence among  the  remote  tribes  of  the  West.  In  the  fall,  he 
flattered  himself  that  his  trading-posts  were  established,  that 
a  friendly  intercourse  had  been  opened,  and  that  peace  pre- 
vailed among  the  tribes,  giving  a  more  encouraging  aspect  to 
his  general  aflairs. 


142 


HISTORY   or  THE 


[book  II. 


But  he  was  again  doomed  to  disappointment.  About  the 
first  of  September,  hostilities  had  broken  out  between  some  of 
the  Iroquois  tribes  and  those  on  the  Illinois.  The  position  of 
the  French  between  the  opposing  bands  was  dangerous  in  the 
extreme,  and  De  Tonti  deemed  it  prudent  to  withdraw  Irom 
the  seat  of  war  to  a  place  of  greater  security.  He  accordingly 
retired  with  his  little  force  to  Fort  Miami,  on  the  St.  Joseph's 
River  of  Lake  Michigan,  where  he  arrived  about  the  middle 
of  September.  Here  he  continued  until  peace  was  established, 
and  La  Salle's  contemplated  exploration  was  necessarily  de- 
ferred. 

[A.D.  1681.]  In  the  spring  of  1681,  La  Salle  set  out  from 
Fort  Frontenac  for  the  West.  He  at  length  reached  the  coun- 
try of  the  Miamis ;  and,  having  made  due  arrangements,  he 
set  out  from  that  post  with  De  Tonti  for  Fort  Creve  CoDur,  on 
the  Uppi  1  Illinois.  The  following  summer  was  spent  in  trav- 
ersing the  country,  visiting  and  supplying  his  trading-posts,  in 
efforts  to  reconcile  the  hostile  tribes,  and  in  opening  a  free  trade 
and  intercourse  with  the  Illinois  and  Miami  tribes.  These 
preparations  having  been  made,  he  began  to  make  his  arrange- 
ments for  completing  the  exploration  of  the  great  river  to  its 
mouth.  To  the  river,  concurring  with  Father  Hennepin,  he 
had  given  the  name  of  "  St.  Louis,"  and  to  the  country  through 
which  it  flowed  that  of  "  Louisiana,"  both  in  honor  of  the  King 
of  France.  The  enterprise  was  one  which  had  engaged  his 
thoughts  and  had  influenced  his  plans  for  the  last  two  years, 
and  he  now  determined  to  complete  the  undertaking.  Before 
he  could  set  out,  he  was  obliged  once  more  to  return  to  Fort 
Frontenac  to  complete  his  arrangements.  His  stay  was  of 
short  duration,  and  on  the  20th  of  November  he  left  Fort 
Frontenac  on  his  return  to  the  Illinois  country.  Having  to 
visit  his  posts,  and  make  other  arrangements  for  his  long  ab- 
sence, he  did  not  arrive  at  Fort  Creve  Coeur  until  the  beginning 
of  January  following.  Here  a  few  days  were  spent  in  pre- 
paring for  his  departure,  and  a  further  delay  of  a  few  days 
was  caused  by  the  inclemency  of  the  winter ;  yet  on  the  2d 
day  of  February,  1682,  La  Salle  and  his  little  band  of  voyagers 
and  explorers,  a  band  of  hardy  adventurers,  were  floating  on 
the  broad  bosom  of  the  Mississippi. 

[A.D.  1682.]  As  M.  Dugay  and  Father  Hennepin  had  al- 
ready explored  the  upper  portion  of  the  river.  La  Salle  de- 


A.D.  1G82.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MI08trtail>|>I. 


143 


termined  to  lose  no  time  in  prosecuting  the  exploration  d(»wn 
to  the  sea.  Having  descended  to  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri, 
he  remained  some  days,  endeavoring  to  obtain  such  information 
as  the  Indians  could  give  of  that  great  Western  tributary,  which 
received  the  name  of  "  St.  Philip."  The  party  next  delayed  a 
few  days  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  where  La  Salle  made  some 
arrangements  for  trade  and  intercourse  with  the  Indians. 
Thence  they  proceeded  down  to  the  first  Chickasa  bluffs. 
Here  La  Salle  entered  into  amicable  arrangements  for  o|)en- 
ing  a  trade  with  the  Chickasa  Indians,  where  he  established 
a  trading-post,  and  obtained  permission  to  build  a  stockade 
fort.  This  he  designed  as  a  point  of  rendezvous  for  traders 
from  the  Illinois  country,  passing  to  the  lower  posts  on  the 
river.  This  post  was  called  "  Fort  Prud'homme,"  in  honor 
of  the  man  who,  with  a  small  garrison,  was  left  in  command. 
The  next  stop  made  by  the  party  was  at  tlie  mouth  of  the  Ar- 
kansas River,  which  was  the  extreme  limit  of  former  discov^v. 
ies.  Here  he  tarried  several  days,  and  then  proceeded  to  a 
village  of  the  Tensas  Indians,  where  he  displayed  the  emblem 
of  Christianity  to  the  admiring  natives.  This  village  was  upon 
the  banks  of  a  lake,  some  distance  back  from  the  river,  and 
was  probably  the  same  now  known  as  "  Lake  Providence," 
from  which  the  Tensas  River  has  its  source.  Here  he  was  re- 
ceived with  much  kindness  and  hospitality  by  the  Indians  ;  and, 
consequently,  remained  several  days  in  friendly  intercourse 
with  them.  Thence  he  continued  his  voyage  down,  and  visited 
each  of  the  tribes  on  the  banks  as  he  passed.  On  the  27th  of 
March  he  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  Red  River.  Here,  likewise, 
he  made  a  short  stay,  and  then  proceeded  down  the  Mississippi 
to  its  confluence  with  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  He  reached  this 
destination  on  the  7th  of  April,  after  a  tedious  voyage  among 
unknown  tribes  for  more  than  twelve  hundred  miles  below  the 
Illinois.  By  occasional  accessions  of  French  and  Indians,  the 
party  now  amounted  to  nearly  sixty  persons ;  some  were  en- 
gaged in  providing  for  their  comfort  and  sustenance  ;  and 
others,  with  La  Salle,  were  engaged  for  several  days  in  ex- 
ploring the  inlets  and  sea-marshes  along  the  coast,  and  in 
making  other  necessary  observations.  La  Salle  then  ascended 
the  river  with  his  party  until  firm  land  was  found,  where  he 
determined  to  tarry  some  days  until  his  men  could  refresh  them- 
selves after  their  toilsome  voyage.    A  few  days  served  to  re- 


'% 


144 


IIIriTORY    OK    TIIK 


[book  II. 


vive  \]w  hiinly  pioneerH,  when  they  prepare'l  to  celehriite  the 
glory  «)t"  France  in  the  posseHsion  of  the  newly-<liscovere«l  prov- 
in<x'.  La  Salle  took  formal  possession  of  the  country,  })Ianted 
the  arms  of  France,  erected  the  cross,  and  calling  the  country 
"  Louisiana,"  in  honor  of  the  King  of  France,  ho  closed  the  cer- 
emony with  a  display  of  the  solemn  and  imposing  rites  of  the 
Catholic  Church.  Thus  France  and  ('hristianity  entered  the 
valley  of  the  Mississippi  hand  in  hand.*' 


*  Soo  Martiii'a  Louioiaim,  vol.  i.,  ]i.  100,  lut. 

Thu  ftillowiiii;  iiiRiTiptioii  anil  profit  rcrhal  aro  copied  by  Mr.  Sparki  fmin  a  MS.  in 
the  Depnrtiiuuit  of  Marine,  at  Parii,  viz. ; 
"A  column  waa  cructud,  and  the  arini  of  Franco  wero  aUlxud  with  this  inHcription: 

'LOUIS  I.K  (illANU, 
not  DE  FRANrK  KT  NAVAHHK,  KRONE; 
LE  NKUVIEME  AVRIL,  l(i83.' " 

The  following  coromonici  witu  then  pcrfomiud,  viz. : 

"Tho  wlioli!  party,  under  artni,  diantiui  tho  Te  Pviim,  tho  E.rauiliiU,  tho  Domine 
Salvum  fur  Itrifcm ;  and  then,  nfti-r  n.  Biilute  of  tiroamiM,  and  cries  of  Vire  le  rut,  the 
column  WM  erected  by  M.  do  la  Balli>,  who,  Btaniling  near  it,  aaiil  with  a  loud  voice  in 
FroDcli,  '  In  the  name  of  tho  most  high,  mighty,  invineihiu,  and  victorious  jirince,  Louii 
the  Great,  by  tho  grace  of  Ood  king  of  Franco  and  Navarre,  fourteenth  of  that  name, 
this  ninth  day  of  April,  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  eighty  two,  I,  in  virtue  of  the 
commission  of  hia  majesty,  which  I  hold  in  my  hand,  and  which  may  be  scon  by  all 
whom  it  may  concern,  have  takeo,  and  do  now  tnkc,  in  tho  name  of  his  majesty,  and 
of  his  successors  to  tho  crown,  possession  of  this  country  of  Louisiana,  tho  seas,  harbors, 
fiorts,  bays,  adjacent  straits,  and  all  the  nations,  peoples,  i>rovinccs,  cities,  towns,  vil- 
lages, mines,  minerals,  fisheries,  streams,  ami  rivers  comprised  in  the  extent  of  said 
Louisiana,  from  tho  mouth  of  tho  great  Ilivcr  St.  Louis,  on  the  eastern  side,  other- 
wise called  Ohio,  Alighin,  Sipore,  or  Chuekagonil,  and  this  with  tho  consent  of  the 
Chouanons,  Chickachas,  and  other  people  dwelling  therein,  with  whom  wc  have  made 
alliance ;  as  also  along  the  Iliver  Colbert,  or  Mississippi,  and  rivers  which  discharge 
themselves  therein,  from  its  source  beyond  the  country  of  the  Kious  or  Nadouessious, 
and  this  with  their  consent,  and  with  the  consent  of  the  Motautees,  lTlk:jal,s,  Mesigameas, 
Coroas,  and  NatchoE,  which  are  tho  most  considerable  nations  (Iwelllng  therein,  with 
whom  we  also  have  made  alliance,  cither  by  ourselves,  or  by  others  in  our  behalf,  ns 
far  as  its  mouth  at  the  Sea  or  Gulf  of  Mexico,  about  the  twenty-seventh  degree  of  the 
elevation  of  tho  North  Pole,  and  also  to  tho  mouth  of  tho  River  of  Palms  ;  upon  the  as- 
surance which  wo  have  received  from  all  these  nations,  that  wo  are  the  flrst  Europeans 
who  have  descended  or  ascended  the  said  River  Colbert,  hereby  protesting  against  all 
those  who  may  in  future  undertake  to  invade  any  or  all  thcso  countries,  people,  or  lands 
above  described,  to  tho  prejudice  of  tho  right  of  his  majesty,  acquired  by  tho  consent 
of  the  nations  herein  named.  Of  which,  and  of  all  that  con  be  ceded,  I  hereby  take  to 
witness  those  who  hear  me,  and  demand  the  act  of  tho  notary  as  required  by  law,' 

"  To  which  the  whole  assembly  responded  with  shouts  of  Vive  le  rot,  and  with  salutes 
of  fire-arms.  Moreover,  the  Sieur  do  la  Salle  caused  to  bo  buried  at  the  foot  of  the  tree 
to  which  the  cross  was  attached,  a  leaden  plate  with  the  arms  of  Franco,  and  the  follow- 
ing Latin  inscription: 

'  LUDOVICUS  MAGNUS  REONAT, 
NONO  APRILIB,  CI3  IOC  LXXXII. 

ROBERTUS  CAVALIER,  CVM  DOMINO  PE  TONTI,  LEGATO,  R.  P.  ZENOBIO  MEMBRE,  RE- 
COLLECTO,  ET  VIOINTI  OALLIS,  PRIMIS  HOC  FLVMEN,  INDE  AH  ILLINEORVM  PAGO  ENAV- 
lOAVIT,  EJVSItVE  OSTIVM  FECIT  PERVIVM,  NONO  APIIILIS,  ANNO  CI3  IOC  LX.XXII.' " 


A.D.  1G83.] 


VAI.IiUY    OP    TVIE    Ml^lfliriSIPPI. 


146 


La  Salle  descended  tL.  Mississippi,  and  his  sagacious  cyo, 
as  he  floated  on  its  tlood,  when  hu  formed  a  cabin  on  the  lirst 
Chickasa  bluff,  as  I)*'  raiser!  the  cross  on  the  bank  of  the  Ar- 
kansas, and  as  he  I'lanted  the  arms  of  France  near  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  beheld  •  iie  future  aiHucnce  of  emi^'rants  ;  he  heard 
in  the  distance  the  footsteps  of  the  advancing  multitude  that 
were  coming  to  t  .ke  possession  of  the  valley.* 

At  length,  La  Salle  and  his  party  began  to  ascend  the  river 
on  their  return  to  the  Illinois  country.  Advancing  slowly 
against  the  strong  current  of  the  Mississippi,  they  made  land  in 
the  Natchez  country,  where  they  tarried  several  days;  but, 
havin'  <iiscovered  a  treacherous  design  among  the  Natchez 
Indians  for  cutting  off  tlie  whole  party.  La  Salle  determined 
to  proceed  without  further  delay.  Their  next  tarry  was  in  the 
country  of  their  old  friemis,  the  Tensas  Indians,  nearly  two 
hundred  miles  above  the  Natchez  villages.  Here  they,  were 
again  hospitably  received,  and  bountifully  su})plied  with  such 
provisions  and  comforts  as  the  Indians  could  give.  On  the 
l:;ith  of  May  they  resumed  their  voyage,  and  proceeded  to 
Fort  Prud'homme,  among  the  Chickasas.  Here  La  Salle  was 
taken  sick;  and,  being  unable  to  travel,  he  remained  nearljf 
two  months  with  his  party,  after  having  dispatched  the  Chev- 
alier de  Tonti  with  twenty  men,  including  Indians,  to  announce 
his  success  to  the  posts  upon  the  Illinois,  and  to  take  command 
of  the  forts  and  settlements  until  his  return. 


The  wliulo  ceremony  was  witnessed  by  altendants,  and  certified  in  a  prods  verba!, 
which  concludes  in  the  fulluwing  words,  viz. : 

"  After  which  the  Sieur  do  la  Sallo  said,  timt  his  majesty,  as  eldest  son  of  tlic  Churcli, 
would  annex  no  country  to  his  crown  without  niakiiii,'  it  his  chief  caru  to  establish  the 
Christian  relii,don  therein,  and  that  its  symbol  must  now  bo  planted ;  which  was  ac- 
cordini,'ly  done  at  once  by  erectins?  a  cross,  before  which  the  Vcrilla  and  the  Dc/mine 
Sulvum  fac  licgem  were  sung.  Whereujion  llic  ceremony  was  concluded  witli  cries  of 
Vive  le  rut. 

"  Of  all  and  every  of  the  above,  the  said  Siour  do  la  Sallo  having  required  of  us  an 
instrument,  wo  have  delivered  to  him  the  same,  signed  by  as,  and  by  tho  undersigned 
witnesses,  this  ninth  day  of  April,  ove  thousand  six  hundred  and  eighty -two. 

"  La  Mktaire,  Notary. 
"  De  I.A  SAI.I.K. 
P.  Zenobe,  llecoUft  Mistionary. 
Henrt  de  Tonti. 
Fkancoi.s  de  Boishondet. 
Jean  Boukdon. 
Sieur  d'Autrat. 
Jacc^ves  Cauciioib.  ^ 

See  Sparkt't  Life  of  Im  Salle,  p.  199,  200. 
*  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  168,  and  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  104. 

Vol.  I.— K 


PlERE  You. 
QlLLES  MeUCRET. 

•Tkan  Miciiet.,  Surgeon. 
.Tean  Mas. 
Jean  Dumonon. 
Nicholas  de  la  Salle." 


1 


146 


HISTORY   OF  THE 


[book  II. 


At  length  La  Salle,  having  recovered  his  health,  set  out  upon 
his  upward  voyage,  and  reached  the  Illinois  country  near  the 
last  of  September.  Father  Zenobe  was  sent  to  France  with 
dispatches  for  the  king,  and  to  represent  the  vast  importance 
which  would  accrue  to  France  by  peopling  the  immense  coun- 
try of  Louisiana  with  Frenchmen  ;  to  report  the  extraordinary 
beauty  of  the  virgin  plains  and  valleys,  the  lakes  and  rivers  of 
the  great  West,  as  they  came  from  the  hands  of  the  Creator, 
deemed  by  all  not  unlike  the  "  garden  of  part\dise." 

[A.D.  1683.]  Several  months  were  spent  by  La  Salle  in 
organizing  his  trading-posts,  in  providing  for  their  future  op- 
erations, in  selecting  his  agents,  and  visiting  the  principal  tribes. 
This  at  length  having  been  accomplished,  he  gave  the  chief 
control  of  the  Illinois  country  to  the  Chevalier  dc  Torti,  as 
commandant  of  "  Fort  St.  Louis,"  and  superintendent  of  the 
whole  trade  of  Illinois  and  Louisiana,  during  his  absence  on  a 
visit  to  Fort  Frontenac,  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  his  estab- 
lishments for  the  fall  and  winter  trade. 

Father  Zenobe  was  still  in  Paris ;  and  the  enemies  of  La 
Salle,  jealous  of  his  enterprise  and  his  growing  fame,  had  sought 
to  prejudice  the  minister  against  the  importance  of  his  dis- 
coveries. He  had  been  represented  as  **  an  ambitious,  plotting, 
restless  character,  full  of  schemes  of  self-aggrandizement." 
Similar  representations  were  made  by  Le  Ferre  de  la  Barre, 
governor  of  Canada,  in  his  official  dispatches.  Zenobe  did 
not  fail  to  expose  the  grounds  of  opposition  to  La  Salle.*  But 
the  Sieur  resolved  in  person  to  appear  before  the  minister  in 
Paris,  and  to  develop  fully  his  discoveries  and  his  plans  of  col- 
onization to  the  king. 

Accordingly,  late  in  the  autumn  of  1683,  he  set  sail  from 
Quebec  for  France,  with  vast  schemes  to  be  laid  before  the 
ministry  for  the  colonization  of  Louisiana.  But  his  enemies 
were  not  idle  in  their  eftbrts  to  frustrate  his  plans.  Yet  Father 
Zenobe  and  the  Count  de  Frontenac  were  in  Paris,  with  all 
their  influence  in  his  favor ;  and  the  minister,  Seignelay,  son  of 
Colbert,  was  inclined  to  enter  heartily  into  all  his  plans. 

La  Salle  arrived  in  Paris  near  the  close  of  the  year,  and 
hastened  to  present  his  claims  to  the  minister's  attention.  Af- 
ter great  delays  and  obstacles,  he  at  length  met  with  a  favora- 

*  Seo  Southern  Uaartcrly  Eeview  of  Cbarleitou,  S.  C,  No.  siii.,  Jtnaary  7th,  1845, 
p.  90-08. 


from 
lore  the 
nemies 
Father 
ith  all 
son  of 


ar,  and 
Af- 
favora- 


n 


1 


A.D.  1684.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


147 


7th,  1845, 


ble  reception  at  court.  The  ministers  became  convinced  of 
the  importance  of  his  discoveries,  and  of  the  energy  of  his  char- 
acter in  extending  their  American  possessions.  Much  atten- 
tion was  therefore  shown  him  at  court,  and  at  length  his  plan 
of  settling  a  colony  at  the  mouth  of  St.  Louis,  or  Mississippi 
River,  was  approved. 

[A.D.  1084.]  More  than  six  months  were  spent  in  France 
in  preparations  for  conducting  a  suitable  colony  for  the  occu- 
pancy of  Louisiana ;  and  under  the  countenance  of  the  crown, 
adventurers  readily  joined  the  contemplated  enterprise.  The 
government  had  resolved  to  supply  the  colonists  with  imple- 
ments and  provisions,  and  to  afford  them  safe  transports  free 
of  expense,  together  with  a  detachment  of  troops  for  their  pro- 
tection.* 

By  the  24th  of  July,  1684,  La  Salle,  having  collected  togeth- 
er his  colony  of  adventurers,  set  sail  from  the  port  of  Rochelle 
in  company  with  a  large  fleet  of  merchantmen.  For  the  con- 
veyance of  the  colony  to  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,  the  gov- 
ernment had  furnished  four  vessels,  under  the  command  of  M. 
Beaujeu,  a  man  of  an  imperious  and  stubborn  disposition. 

The  whole  colony  which  embarked  for  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
under  the  superintendence  of  La  Salle,  for  the  occupancy  of 
Louisiana,  consisted  of  two  hundred  and  eighty  persons,  of  all 
ranks  and  ages.  Among  tii«^m  were  one  hundred  soldiers,  un- 
der the  command  of  M.  Joutel ;  thirty  volunteers,  including  the 
young  Cavalier,  and  the  rash  and  passionate  Moranget,  neph- 
ews of  La  Salle  ;  six  ecclesiastics,  including  a  brother  of  La 
Salle ;  twenty  families,  including  young  women,  liberally  sup- 
plied with  provisions,  implements  of  husbandry,  and  money ; 
and  also  a  number  of  mechanics  of  various  arts,  who  had  em- 
barked  their  fortunes  in  the  enterprise. 

Such  was  the  physical  strength  of  the  colony  which  was  to 
plant  the  standard  of  France  and  Christianity  in  the  newly-dis- 
covered province  of  Louisiana ;  hut  the  moral  worth  of  the 
colony  was  strangely  complicated.  The  mechanics  were  poor 
workmen,  ill  versed  in  their  art ;  the  soldiers,  thougli  under 
Joutel,  a  man  of  courage  and  truth,  and  afterward  the  historian 
of  the  enterprise,  were  themselves  spiritless  vagabonds,  with- 
out discipline  and  without  experience  ;  the  volunteers  were 
restless,  with  indefinite  expectations  ;  and,  most  of  all,  Beaujeu, 

*  Bancroft*!  Hist,  of  the  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  168. 


148 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  II. 


the  naval  commander,  was  deHcient  in  judgment,  envious,  self- 
willed,  and  foolishly  proud.* 

Early  in  the  voyage,  a  variance  sprung  up  between  the  na- 
val commander  and  La  Salle.  This  was  only  the  beginning 
of  continual  differences  between  these  two  men ;  and  in  every 
instance  on  record  the  judgment  of  La  Salle  was  right. 

After  a  long  voyage,  with  tedious  culms,  the  little  fleet  ar- 
rived in  the  West  India  Seas.  Before  they  reached  Hispuniola, 
they  were  scattered  by  a  storm,  and  Spunisii  privateers  cap- 
tured one  of  their  vessels.  The  fleet  remained  several  weeks 
in  the  vicinity  of  Hispaniola  and  Cuba,  for  the  purpose  of  pro- 
curing further  supplies  for  the  colony,  and  for  gaining  informa- 
tion relative  to  the  direction  of  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Louis  River. 
Its  longitude  was  unknown  to  the  mariners,  and  its  direction 
from  Hispaniola  was  uncertain.  While  at  Hispaniola,  La 
Salle  was  delayed  and  cruelly  frustrated  by  the  perverseness 
of  Beaujeu,  and  many  of  the  colonists  sickened  and  died  from 
exposure  to  the  climate.  But  disappointment,  grief,  and  intem- 
perance were  strong  predisjwsing  causes,  and  La  Salle  already 
saw  the  shadow  of  his  coming  misfortunes.  The  fleet  sailed 
at  length  from  St.  Domingo,  on  the  25th  of  November,  for  the 
Mississippi.  On  the  10th  of  January,  the  fleet  must  have  been 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi ;  but  La  Salle  thought  not, 
and  they  sailed  westward.  Presently,  perceiving  his  error.  La 
Salle  desired  to  return ;  but  Beaujeu  refused,  and  thus  they 
sailed  westward,  and  still  to  the  west,  till  they  reached  the 
Bay  of  Matagorda,  which  proved  to  be  seven  degrees,  or  more 
than  four  hundred  miles,  \vest  of  the  Mississippi. 

[A.D.  1685.]  At  length  they  came  in  sight  of  land,  at  the 
distance  of  six  leagues.  The  coast  was  unknown,  and  none 
could  ascertain  the  longitude ;  the  latitude  was  29°  10'  north, 
but  whether  east  or  west  of  the  Mississippi,  none  could  tell.  La 
Salle  persisted  that  the  river  was  fur  to  the  east  of  them.  Soon 
after,  they  were  overtaken  by  a  storm,  and  one  vessel,  with  a 
large  supply  of  provisions,  implements  of  husbandry,  and  ammu- 
nition, was  wrecked  and  lost.  All  were  anxious  and  distress- 
ed ;  but  M.  Beaujeu,  the  conmiander  of  the  fleet,  had  differed 
with  La  Salle  on  the  voyage ;  both  were  imperious  and  un- 
yielding, and  the  breach  had  widened  daily.  The  naval  com- 
mander had  conducted  the  colony  to  the  shores  of  the  Mexican 

"  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  169.    Bee,  also,  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  104. 


A.D.  1685.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPri. 


140 


at  the 
id  none 

north, 
11.    h'l 
Soon 
with  a 
ammu- 
istress- 
diilereil 
and  un- 
al  coni- 
^exican 


Gulf,  and  refusing  to  be  longer  delayed  after  his  duty  had  been 
performed,  he  resolved  to  return  to  France,  and  t(/  leave  La 
Salle  to  locate  his  colony,  and  to  discover  his  great  river.  Im- 
patient and  resentful,  he  caused  the  little  colony  to  be  landed 
at  the  first  convenient  harbor,  and  set  sail  for  Europe,  leaving 
the  wretched  colony,  of  about  two  hundred  and  thirty  souls, 
destitute  and  lielpless,  in  an  unknown  and  savage  wilderness, 
huddled  together  in  a  rude  fort  made  of  the  fragments  of  their 
wrecked  vessel. 

The  bay  near  which  they  were  left  proved  to  be  a  portion  of 
the  present  Bay  of  Matagorda,  on  the  west  side  of  the  Colo- 
rado, and  near  eight  hundred  miles,  by  the  indentations  of  the 
coast,  west  of  the  Mississippi. 

For  weeks  La  Salle  continued  to  search  for  the  hidden  riv- 
er, by  coasting  alung  the  shore  oast  and  west,  and  by  expedi- 
tions by  land  for  the  same  object.  In  the  mean  time,  his  col- 
ony remained  encamped  near  the  Matagorda  Bay.  About  the 
middle  of  March,  the  Indians  began  to  exhibit  a  hostile  attitude, 
and  to  threaten  the  destruction  of  the  colony.  At  length,  late 
in  April,  he  moved  fifteen  miles  further  up  the  river,  where  a 
rude  fort  was  erected  for  the  protection  of  the  people  against 
Indian  massacre,  and  here  they  opened  a  field  and  a  garden 
for  corn,  beans,  and  vegetables.  This  settlement  and  fort  were 
called  "  St.  Louis,"  and  comprised  the  first  French  settlement 
in  Texas. 

Here  La  Salle  planted  the  arms  of  France,  erected  the  cross, 
and  formally  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  name  of  his 
king.  This  settlement  of  the  country,  thus  formally  occupied, 
made  Texas  a  portion  of  Louisiana,*  and  gave  to  France  a 
claim  which  had  nev  on  been  relinquished  when  Louisiana  fell 
into  th3  possession  of  the  United  States,  nearly  one  hundred 
and  twenty  years  afterward. 

Having  secured  his  little  colony  from  savage  massacre,  he 
began  to  extend  his  explorations  in  search  of  the  Mississippi. 
Parties  were  dispatched  toward  the  east  and  toward  the  west, 
in  hopes  of  gaining  some  intelligence  of  the  river.  La  Salle 
at  length  set  out  himself  to  seek  the  Mississippi,  in  canoes,  with 
an  ample  crew  ;  but  after  an  absence  of  four  months,  and  hav- 
ing explore  '.  V.ie  coast  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  he  re- 
turned to  his  colony  with  the  remnant  of  his  detachment,  un- 

*  Darby'i  Loaisiana,  p.  10. 


150 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


successful,  himself  in  rags,  and  having  lost  thirteen  men  in  the 
expedition.*  Yet  his  presence  was  sufficient  to  inspire  hope 
in  the  desponding  colony,  and  he  continued  indefatigable  in  his 
exertions  to  discover  the  river,  which  he  still  believed  to  be 
east  of  them. 

[A.D.  1686.]  The  colony  had  been  on  the  Colorado  more 
thnn  a  year,  and  La  Salle  determined  to  seek  the  Spanish  set- 
tlements of  Northern  Mexico.  For  this  purpose,  "in  April, 
1686,  he  plunged  into  the  wilderness  with  twenty  companions, 
lured  by  the  brilliant  fiction  of  the  rich  mines  of  St.  Barbe,  the 
El  Dorado  of  Northern  Mexico.  Here,  among  the  Cenis  In- 
dians, he  obtained  five  horses,  and  supplies  of  maize  and  beans. 
He  found  no  mines,  but  a  country  unsurpassed  for  beauty  of 
climate  and  exuberant  fertility." 

"  On  his  return,  he  heard  of  the  wreck  of  the  little  barque 
which  had  remained  with  the  colony,  and  he  heard  it  unmoved. 
Heaven  and  man  seemed  his  enemies,  and  with  the  giant  ener- 
gy of  an  indomitable  will,  having  lost  his  hopes  of  fortune,  his 
hopes  of  fame,  with  his  colony  diminished  to  about  forty  souls, 
among  whom  discontent  had  given  birth  to  plans  of  crime,  with 
no  European  nearer  than  the  River  Panuco,  no  French  nearer 
than  the  Illinois,  he  resolved  to  travel  on  foot  to  his  country- 
men at  the  North,  and  to  return  from  Canada  to  renew  his  col- 
ony in  Texas.f 

Th:;  coloay  began  to  suffer ;  the  depredations  and  hostility 
of  the  Indians  had  prevented  the  advantages  which  they  had 
hoped  from  their  little  crop,  and  they  suffered  for  food.  The 
summer  was  past,  and  the  winter  was  not  remote,  and  La  Salle 
determined  to  make  an  effort  to  reach  the  Illinois  country. 
From  the  Indians  he  had  learned  thai  the  Spanish  settlements 
of  Western  Mexico  were  within  four  or  five  hundred  miles  on 
the  west.  This  convinced  him  that  he  was  certainly  west  of 
the  Mississippi,  yet  he  dared  not  make  their  situation  known  to 
the  Mexican  authorities,  for  France  and  Spain  were  now  at 
war :  his  only  alternative  was  to  seek  the  Illinois  country. 

Having  made  preparation  to  search  for  this  remote  region,  he 
set  out  with  a  party  of  twenty  men,  some  time  in  the  month  of 
October.  He  proceeded  in  a  general  northeast  direction  about 
four  hundred  miles,  through  unknown  lands,  and  tribes  speak- 
ing a  strange  language.     Having  proceeded  thus  far,  he  was 

•  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  106-110.  t  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  172. 


A.D.  1687.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


151 


taken  sick,  his  provisions  and  ammunition  began  to  fail,  and  he 
was  compelled  to  retrace  his  steps  to  his  fort  on  the  Colorado. 
During  the  winter  following,  he  was  indefatigable  in  supplying 
his  colony  with  every  requisite  afforded  by  the  country,  and 
in  placing  it  in  the  best  condition  to  make  a  good  and  plentiful 
crop  the  ensuing  spring.  But  time  passed  off  slowly,  under 
gloomy  apprehensions. 

[A.D.  1687.]  La  Salle  at  length  became  impatient,  vexed, 
harassed,  and  discouraged.  Small  incidents  vexed  him  much ; 
his  men  became  impatient  and  censoricds  upon  him  as  the  au- 
thor of  all  their  misfortunes ;  and  he,  in  turn,  became  harsh  and 
severe  to  his  men.  They  had  been  compelled  with  him,  in  his 
unavailing  searches,  to  encounter  the  marshes,  the  bayous, 
swollen  creeks,  and  the  inhospitable  deserts  of  western  Texas. 
They  hud  been  in  this  unknown  region  for  more  than  two 
years  ;  many  of  their  number  had  died,  having  suffered  much 
from  the  climate,  and  other  privations  incident  to  their  condi- 
tion ;  others  had  been  killed  by  the  Indians,  until  the  colony  was 
reduced  to  less  than  forty  p';rsons.* 

The  remainder  had  become  desperate  in  the  hopelessness  of 
their  condition,  when  La  Salle  at  last,  in  January,  determined, 
as  a  last  effort,  again  to  seek  relief  from  the  Illinois  settle- 
ments, toward  the  northeast,  or  from  France  herself.  With 
this  determination,  he  set  out  early  in  March  upon  the  perilous 
journey,  accompanied  by  sixteen  men,  provided  with  wild  hor- 
ses obtained  from  the  Cenis  Indians  for  their  baggage,  clothed 
in  skins,  and  in  shoes  made  of  green  buffalo  hides.  Thus 
equipped,  the  party  set  out,  through  wide  prairies  and  woods, 
following  the  buffalo  paths  for  roads,  confiding  in  the  courage 
of  their  leader,  ai.d  hoping  to  win  favor  with  the  savages. 
The  remnant  of  the  colony,  including  twenty  men,  ^^cl•o  to 
remain  at.  Fort  St.  Louis,  and  await  their  return. 

They  iiad  proceeded  probably  three  hundred  miles,  and  wer6 
upon  some  of  the  western  branches  of  the  Trinity,  when  they 
encamped  to  recruit  their  exhausted  frames  and  to  procure 
game  for  their  sustenance  in  the  progress  of  their  journey. 
Dissatisfaction  and  jealousy  among  his  companions  finally  ri- 
pened into  mutiny.  Two  men  upon  a  hunting  excursion  mur- 
dered Moranget,  the  nephew  of  La  Salle;  and  three  days  af- 

*  Sonic  account  of  La  Salle's  colony  may  be  seeu  in  Stoddait's  Sketches  of  Louisiana. 

p.  20-'^3. 


152 


I1I8TORY    OF   TUB 


[noOK  II. 


ter,  when  La  Salle,  led  by  the  hovering  of  the  vultures,  was  in 
search  of  his  inissing  nephew's  murdered  body,  concealed  in  the 
grass,  he  fell  without  uttering  a  word,  shot  dead  by  Dehault, 
one  of  his  men,  who  was  skulking  in  the  high  grass.  The 
'ong-suppressed  feelings  of  revenge  and  mutiny  in  one  of  the 
conspirators,  Leotat  the  surgeon,  gave  vent  in  the  expression, 
as  La  Salle  fell,  "  You  are  down  now,  grand  bashaw  !  you  are 
down  now !"  and  they  proceeded  to  des])oil  his  body,  which 
was  left  naked  upon  the  prairie  to  be  devoured  by  wild  beasts. 

Thus  perished  the  Chevalier  la  Salle,  one  of  the  most  en- 
terprising, indefatigable,  and  persevering  of  all  the  early  ex- 
plorers of  the  Continent  of  America.  lie  was  a  man  whom  no 
misfortune  could  daunt  and  no  terror  could  alarm,  a  martyr  to 
the  cause  of  truth  and  to  the  welfare  of  his  country.  Yet,  to 
the  sorrow  of  France,  and  the  everlasting  ignominy  of  the  un- 
feeling and  treacherous  Beaujeu,  he  was  compelled  to  die  a 
murdered  exile,  after  suffering  in  mental  anxiety  and  in  physi- 
cal toil  more  than  a  thousand  deaths. 

The  murderers  themselves  soon  after  met  their  fate  from  the 
hands  of  their  companions.  Joutel,  with  the  surviving  nejjhew 
of  La  Salle,  and  others,  in  all  but  seven,  obtained  a  guide  for 
the  Arkansas,  and,  proceeding  in  a  northeastern  direction,  they 
came  upon  a  French  post,  erected  by  De  Tonti,*  where  a  hut 
was  tenanted  by  two  Frenchmen,  near  the  present  post  of  Ar- 
kansas, sixty  miles  from  the  Mississippi.  The  weary  pilgrims 
some  time  afterward  reached  the  Illinois,  there  content  to 
spend  the  remainder  of  their  lives.  But  after  a  delay  of  four 
months,  they  set  out  for  Quebec,  to  report  the  disasters  of  the 
colony.  On  the  ninth  of  October,  1087,  about  seven  months 
after  the  death  of  La  Salle,  they  arrived  at  Quebec. 

The  remnant  of  the  colony  left  at  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard 
either  died  of  famine  and  disease,  or  were  taken  captive  or  de- 
stroyed by  the  Indians.     They  were  never  heard  of  afterward.* 


*  This  i)iirty,  ncrorcUng  toother  authorities,  consisted  of  Joutel,  Cavalier,  brother  of 
Latialle,  Father  Athanasius,  and  t  von  others.  Thoy  ninilc  their  way  northward,  and 
reached  the  country  of  the  Nassonit.  .^:  or  Nassonians,  high  up  Red  llivcr.  Further  on 
they  found  the  Ccnis  or  Cenesions,  who  furnished  them  with  horses  and  guides  to  the 
Arkansas.  Among  th»  Cenis  they  were  joined  by  four  Frenchmen  who  had  deserted 
the  year  before,  and  had  escaped  to  the  Indians.  Sec  a  full  account  given  in  Stoddart's 
Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  23,  S3. 

t  Stotldart,  following  the  authority  of  a  manuscript  of  La  Harpe,  says  the  rtMnnant 
of  this  colony  was  seized  by  Spanish  "raisers  in  1689,  and  by  them  carried  to  Mexico. 
This  is  probably  the  truth.— Sketches  of  Louiaioua,  p.  24. 


A.D.  1089.] 


VALLEY  OF    THE    MIBHISSirPL 


153 


kard 
de- 

i-d.* 


I 


liinnt 
Ixiuu. 


The  Chevalier  De  Tonti,  having  heard  of  La  Salle's  arrival 
in  the  West  Indies,  on  his  voyage  for  the  mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, had  descended  by  way  of  the  Illinois  with  a  detachment 
of  men  and  supplies,  to  meet  the  coKmy.  But  when  he  re:jched 
the  mouth  of  the  river,  he  found  no  trace  of  La  Salle  or  his 
colony.  After  an  anxious,  long,  and  vain  search  for  his  friend, 
he  returned  to  the  Illinois,  and  thence  to  Fort  Frontenac. 

[A.D.  lOHO.]  In  1(J8J),  the  Mexican  authorities,  having  heard 
of  the  French  colony  on  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  sent  a  detach- 
ment of  troops,  under  Don  Alonzo  de  Leon,  to  search  for  them  ; 
but  when  they  arrived  at  the  site  of"  Fort  St.  Louis,"  no  white 
man  was  found.  Having  heard  that  the  French  had  retired  to 
the  country  of  the  Assinaia  Indians,  near  Red  Iliver,  Don 
Alonzo  proceeded  toward  the  Assinais  towns,  where  he  was 
courteously  rec^eived  by  the  natives,  but  the  French  were  not 
to  be  found  ;  and,  after  a  delay  of  some  days,  enjoying  the  hos- 
pitality of  the  Indians,  he  set  out  on  his  return,  having  desig- 
nated this  part  of  the  country  "  Texas,"  or  friends.  Thirty 
years  allerward,  the  Spaniards  sent  missionaries  to  this  portion 
of  the  country,  where  they  at  subsequent  periods  established 
military  posts,  or  presidios^  around  which  grew  up  the  first 
Spanish  settlements  in  Texas.* 

Thus  ended  the  first  attempt  of  the  French  to  settle  the  re- 
gions of  the  Lower  Mississippi.  The  same  fortune  attended 
all  the  first  European  settlements  in  North  America,  until  they 
began  to  be  sufficiently  numerous  and  powerful  to  withstand 
the  natives  and  the  climate.  From  the  death  of  La  Salle  the 
whole  region  on  both  sides  of  the  Mississi|)pi,  from  its  source 
to  its  mouth,  and  for  an  indefinite  extent  east  and  west,  was 
known  as  Louisiana,  and  the  river  itself  as  the  St.  Louis  Iliver: 
both  in  honor  of  Louis  XIV.,  king  of  France. 

The  further  prosecution  of  discoveries  on  the  Lower  Missis 
sippi  was  interrupted,  until  the  year  1GJ)8,  by  the  harassing 
and  bloody  war  kept  up  against  the  province  of  (Canada  from 
1689  to  1690,  by  the  Iroquois  Indians  and  the  British  cojoniesf 
of  New  England  and  New  York. 

But  the  occupation  of  the  Illinois  never  was  discontinued 
from  the  time  La  Salle  returned  from  Frontenac,  in  1G8L 
Joutel  found  a  garrison  at  Fort  St.  Louis,  on  the  Illinois,  in 
1687,  and  in  1689  La  Houtan  bears  testimony  that  it  still  con- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  126,  ia7.  t  Idem,  p.  123-138. 


154 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book  II. 


tinned.  In  1700  a  public  document  proves  its  existence;  and 
it  was  the  wish  of  Louis  XIV.  to  preserve  it  in  a  pood  con- 
dition ;  and  when  Tonti,  in  1700,  again  descended  the  Missis- 
sippi, he  was  attended  by  twenty  Canadians,  residents  on  the 
Illinois.* 

From  the  time  of  La  Salle's  departure  from  France,  in  1684, 
with  his  colony,  for  the  Mississippi,  the  jealousy  of  Eng'and 
had  been  awakened  against  the  extension  of  the  French  do- 
minion in  North  America ;  to  arrest  which,  the  usual  intrigue 
of  the  English  cabinet  was  put  in  operation. 

About  that  time,  the  English  began  to  excite  the  Iroquois 
tribes  of  Indians  to  hostilities  against  the  French  settlements 
on  the  St.  Lawrence.  In  1087,  the  cabinet  of  St.  James  was 
using  every  exertion,  by  court  intrigue  and  diplomatic  negoti- 
ation, to  lull  the  French  court  and  the  province  of  Canada  into 
a  fatal  security.  It  affected  an  anxious  desire  to  conclude  a 
treaty  of  neutral  friendship  and  peace  between  their  respect- 
ive colonies,  while  the  Governor  of  New  York  was  secretly 
and  treacherously  intriguing  with  the  Iroquois  tribes,  and  en- 
deavoring to  excite  their  jealousy  and  hostility  against  the 
French  on  the  St.  Lawrence.  He  endeavored  to  induce  them 
to  make  sudden  and  unexpected  attacks  and  incursions  against 
their  defenseless  settlements,  and  promised,  in  that  case,  not  to 
desert  his  red  allies  in  any  event. 

New  France  was  a  feeble  colony  in  the  midst  of  hostile  sav- 
ages. The  actual  French  settlements,  as  yet,  had  not  extend- 
ed upon  the  lakes.  "  West  of  Montreal,  the  principal  French 
posts,  and  those  but  inconsiderable  ones,  were  at  Frontenac,  at 
Mackinaw,  and  on  the  Illinois.  At  Niagara  there  was  a  waver- 
ing purpose  of  maintaining  a  post,  but  no  permanent  occupation. 
So  weak  were  the  garrisons,  that  the  English  traders,  with  an 
escort  of  Indians,  had  ventured  even  to  Mackinaw,  and,  by 
means  of  the  Senecas,  obtained  a  large  share  of  the  commerce 
of  the  lakes.  In  self-defence,  French  diplomacy  had  attempted 
to  pervade  the  West,  and  concert  an  alliance  with  all  the  tribes 
from  Lake  Ontario  to  the  Mississippi.  The  traders  were  sum- 
moned even  from  the  plains  of  the  Sioux ;  and  Tonti  and  the 
Illinois  were,  by  way  of  the  Ohio  and  the  Alleghany,  to  pre- 
cipitate thems'  Ues  on  the  Senecas,  while  the  French  should 
come  from  M  iitreal,  and  the  Ottawas  and  other  Algonquins, 

*  Bancroft's  Hist,  of  Uie  U.  States,  voL  iii.,  p.  195. 


K  II. 

and 

con- 

ssis- 

the 

684, 
r'and 

{  do- 
rigue 

quois 
[iients 
s  was 
egoti- 
a  into 
lude  a 
ispect- 
jcretly 
nd  en- 
ist  the 
e  them 
igainst 
not  to 

e  sav- 
xtend- 
rench 
nac,  at 
waver- 
ipation. 
with  an 
ind,  by 
nmerce 
empted 
e  tribes 
re  sum- 
and  the 
to  pre- 
should 
nquins, 


A.D.  1680.] 


VALLEY  OF   THE    MlSSIgSim. 


1S5 


under  Ducantaye,  the  vigilant  commander  at  Mackinaw,  should 
descend  from  Michigan.  But  the  |)ower  of  the  Illinois  was 
broken ;  the  Hurons  and  Ottawas  were  almost  ready  to  be- 
come the  allies  of  the  Senecas.  The  savages  still  held  the 
keys  of  the  great  West ;  intercourse  existed  but  by  means  of 
the  forest  rangers,  who  penetrated  the  barren  heaths  around 
Hudson's  Bay,  the  morasses  of  the  northwest,  and  the  homes 
of  the  Sioux  and  Miamis — the  recesses  of  every  forest  where 
there  was  an  Indian  with  skins  to  sell.  'God  alone  could  have 
saved  Canada  this  year,'  wrote  Denonville  in  1688.  But  for 
the  missions  at  the  West,  Illinois  would  have  been  abandoned, 
the  fort  at  Mackinaw  lost,  and  a  general  rising  of  the  natives 
would  have  completed  the  ruin  of  New  France."*  Such  was 
the  danger  of  the  French  settlements  of  Canada  from  the  hos- 
tilities of  the  Indian  tribes. 

The  following  year  the  English  began  to  make  open  demon- 
stration of  hostilities  in  Hudson's  Bay  and  Acadie,  while  the 
Indians  of  the  Five  Nations  began  to  be  very  troublesome  in 
their  attacks  on  the  French  settlements  and  the  trade  of  the 
St.  Lawrence.  The  whole  population  of  all  Canada  was  only 
1 1,249  souls,t  exposed  to  Indian  hostility  and  English  intrigue. 

On  the  7th  of  June,  the  following  year,  the  Count  de  Fron- 
tenac  was  appointed  governor-general  of  New  France.  Diffi- 
culties were  increasing  between  the  two  courts,  and  warlike 
preparations  wcj,  e  progressing  in  the  province  of  New  France. 
During  this  time  the  Iroquois,  or  Five  Nations,  instigated  by 
their  English  neighbors  of  New  York,  had  been  preparing  a 
secret  expedition  against  the  upper  settlements  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence. On  the  25th  of  August,  1689,  they  made  a  sudden,  un- 
expected, and  terrible  irruption,  with  fifteen  hundred  warriors, 
into  the  Island  of  Montreal.  The  whole  island  was  ravaged 
with  fire  and  sword ;  all  the  settlements  were  destroyed ;  the 
town  and  fort  of  Montreal  were  taken ;  all  the  victims  who 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians  were  butchered  with  unheard- 
of  cruelties. 

After  spreading  blood,  horror,  and  consternation  in  every 
direction  until  October,  they  retired,  with  threats  that  not  one 
Frenchman  should  be  found  living  in  Canada  at  the  opening 
of  the  next  spring.  In  the  mean  time,  England  had  formally 
declared  war  against  France.     From  this  time,  the  war  against 

*  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  17a.        t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  126-128. 


156 


1IIST0RY   or   TUB 


[book  II. 


New  France  was  waged  with  vigor  and  perseverance,  both 
by  England  and  the  Iroquois  tribes,  until  the  year  1000,  when 
the  treaty  of  llyswick  put  a  close  to  hostilities.  While  the 
English  fleets  and  troops  had  ravaged  all  the  province  on  the 
sea-board,  and  up  the  St.  Lawrence  as  far  as  Quebec  and 
Montreal,  the  Iroquois  allies  had  repeatedly  ravaged  the  up- 
per  settlements,  yet  at  the  close  of  this  war  the  population  of 
Canada  had  increased  to  1.3,000  souls.* 

[A.D.  1006.]  After  many  vacillations  relative  to  their  course 
of  policy  with  the  French,  the  Western  tribes  became  settled 
in  their  determination.  The  prudence  of  the  memorable  La 
Motte  Cadillac,  who  had  been  appointed  governor  at  Macki- 
naw, confirmed  the  friendship  of  the  neighboring  tribes,  and  a 
party  of  Ottawas,  Potawatamies,  and  Chippewas  surprised  and 
routed  a  band  of  Iroquois,  returning  with  piles  of  beaver  and 
scalps  as  trophies. 

Soon  afterward.  Frontenac.  then  seventy-four  years  old,  con- 
ducted an  invasion  against  the  Onond.ngas  and  Oneidas.  He 
ravaged  their  country,  destroyed  the  corn,  burned  their  vil- 
lages, and  caused  the  enemies  of  the  French  to  seek  safety  in 
flight.  In  August  he  encamped  near  the  Salt  Springs,  upon 
the  site  of  Salina.  Frontenac  refused  to  push  his  victorious 
arms  against  the  Cayugas ;  he  declined  to  risk  more,  as  if  un- 
certain of  the  result.  "  It  was  time  for  him  to  repose,"  and  the 
army  returned  to  Montreal.  He  had  humbled,  but  not  sub- 
dued, the  Five  Nations,  and  left  them  to  sufler  from  a  famine. 
They  were  left  to  recover  their  lands  and  their  spirit,  having 
pushed  hostilities  so  far  that  no  negotiation  for  peace  was  like- 
ly to  succeed. f 

[A.D.  1607. J  So  soon  as  this  war  was  fairly  terminated, 
France  proceeded  to  occupy  and  settle  the  Valley  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, pushing  her  colonies  into  it  from  the  North  and  South 
at  ^he  same  time.  In  the  North  they  entered  from  Canada 
and  the  lakes,  by  way  of  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  Rivers ;  at 
the  South  they  advanced  from  Mobile  Bay  and  River,  and 
through  the  passes  of  the  Mississippi  at  the  Balize. 

*  Martin'*  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  137.  t  Bancroft'!  U.  Statei,  vol.  iii.,  p.  191. 


A.D.  1090.] 


VALLBY    OF   TUB   MI88l88irPI. 


167 


CHAPTER  III. 

ADVANCE  OF  THE  FRENCH  8ETTLEMENT8  FROM  CANADA  UPON  THE 
iri'F.R  MISSIBflirPI  AND  OHIO  RIVERS,  TO  TUB  CLOSE  OF  THE 
FREM-H  WAR. A.D.    1090  TO  1704. 

Argumrnt. — ErttlemoiiU  near  tlio  Mittioni,  anil  La  Ballo'i  Trading-poiti  on  thn  Illi 
iu)ii.— At  I'earia.— Kaikmkin.— Miaiiiiiinrici  viiit  tl)u  Lowur  Mittiisiitpi.— Dotruit 
■ottluil  ill  1701,  tiy  La  Motto  Cnilillnr.  —  I'oaco  with  tho  Ini<|U(iia  and  VVoatoni 
Trlboii.— Bni;liih  Junluiiiy. — Hoitilo  Foxui  liumblinl  in  17i:i. — f^uttloincnti  on  tlio 
Upper  Mi*iiiisi|ipi  tVom  171'J  ti)  17-.*U. — Arcosaiuu  of  Kmi^anta  from  Canada  ami  Lou- 
iaiaiin.— Ilonnutt  ami  two  hniulruil  Miiicri  orrivo. — Trade  betwocii  tlio  lllinuia  and 
Mobile. — AKriuultiire  in  the  Illinoia  and  Wabaah  Countrica. — Ohio  Uiver  uiinxplur 
Oil.  —  Fort  Clmitrea  built  in  17i.'l. — Villairc*  in  ita  Vicinity. — Juauita'  Colloijo  at 
Kaakaskia. — Advance  of  tho  French  Houth  of  tho  Niagara  River. — On  Ontario  and 
Chonipliiin.— Fort  Niagara  bviilt  in  naii. — (!n>wn  Point  in  1727. — Ticondonign  ui 
1731. — Tuacarowaa  join  tho  Five  Nationa. — I'oat  St.  Vinccnt'a  erected  in  1735. — 
l'rca<|iic  IhIo  in  1740. — Ai;riculttiro  of  the  Wabaah  in  1740. — Knf,'liah  Jcaloiiay. — Villa- 
ges of  till!  Iliinoia  Country  in  n.M. — I'opulntion  of  Koakaakia.— French  advance  to  the 
Head  W'ntcra  of  the  Allogliony  Uiver  in  1733. —  Forta  Lo  Uouf,  Venongo,  Sundiiaky. 
-  -Ohio  Company  of  Virginia.— (iiat  viaita  the  Ohio  Region  aa  Ai;i>nt  of  tho  ('oiiipany 
in  nyA. — Kiigliah  Culonioa  rouuiiiatrato  against  tho  Advance  of  the  French. — Major 
Washington  Coininiaaionor  to  Le  licuf. — Hia  Miaaion  unaucceasful. — (iovemor  Diii- 
wiildie  rouaca  the  I'eoplu  uf  Virginia  to  resist  the  French  on  the  Ohio. — Captain 
Trent  ndvnnces  to  the  Ohio  in  17."i'l. — Lieutenant  Ward's  Detachment  captured  by 
the  French. — Fort  Oui|Uesne  erected  by  the  French. — Colonel  Washington  niairh- 
ca  a  Detachniont  to  the  Monongahela. — Captures  a  Detachment  under  M.  Jumonville, 
who  is  killed. — Colonel  Waahingt(Hi  surrendurs  ''Fort  Neceaaity"  to  the  French, 
and  retires  to  Fort  Cumberland. — French  Forbearance  ami  Moderation. — An'ivnl  of 
OenernI  Hraddm-k  nt  Alexandria. — Preparations  for  tho  ('apturo  of  Fort  Ducpiesno. — 
General  Braddock  marchea  from  Fort  Cumberland  for  the  Ohio. — Falls  into  au  Am- 
buscade on  tho  Monongahela,  and  utterly  defeated. — French  at  Dutpiesiie  undis- 
turbed for  two  Years. — Oencral  Forbes,  in  175S,  advances  to  the  Ohio. — Occupies 
Fort  Duiiueane. — AU  Canada  fulls  under  tho  British  Arms. — Franco  relin)|uislies 
New  Franco  and  Louisiana,  by  tliu  Treaties  of  17G:i  and  1703,  to  tipain  and  (ircat 
Britain. 

[A.D.  1090-1700.]  The  trading-posts  established  by  La 
Salle,  and  the  missions  south  and  southwest  of  Lake  Michigan, 
were  points  of  attraction  around  which  emigrants  and  adven- 
turers from  Canada  were  annually  collected,  until  each  be- 
came a  small  French  settlement.  The  frequent  visits  of  La 
Salle  among  the  Miami  Indians,  and  those  on  the  Illinois,  had 
prepared  the  way  for  further  intercourse  and  trade  by  his  suc- 
cessors. The  glowing  descriptions  of  the  country  given  by 
him  and  his  predecessors  had  been  such,  that  the  imaginations 
of  adventurers  were  filled  with  the  ideas  of  a  terrestrial  para- 
dise in  the  delightful  regions  of  the  Illinois  and  the  Mississip- 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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£f  1^    12.0 


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HiotograiAic 

Sdences 
Corporation 


23  WiST  MAIN  STREiT 

WiBSTIR,N.Y.  MSm 

(7f  6)  172-4503 


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158 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


.«* 


pi.  The  climate,  too,  was  said  to  be  comparatively  mild,  and 
the  forests  to  abound  in  the  choicest  products  of  fruits,  which 
yielded  a  spontaneous  supply.  Such  descriptions  served  as 
strong  temptations  to  the  inhabitant  of  the  cold  and  compara- 
tively sterile  shores  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  lakes.  Ad- 
venturers continued  to  advance  from  the  older  settlements  of 
Quebec  and  Montreal  to  the  more  fertile  and  temperate  region 
in  the  Far  West.  Their  route  was  through  the  lakes  first  trav- 
ersed by  Marquette  in  1673,  and  by  La  Salle  in  1679,  and 
through  the  Straits  of  Mackinaw  to  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Jo- 
seph's River  of  Michigan,  and  to  Chicago  Creek  of  Illinois. 
From  these  points  they  passed  over  the  dividing  ridge  to  the 
head  branches  of  the  Illinois,  the  Des  Pleins  on  the  west,  and 
the  Kankakee  on  the  east.  There  were  still  living  many 
who  had  traversed  these  routes  with  La  Salle  in  the  various 
journeys  which  he  made  in  this  region ;  others  had  volunteered 
to  accompany  the  Chevalier  de  Tonti  in  his  fruitless  search 
for  the  unfortunate  La  Salle  and  his  colony,  which  had  been 
lost  in  Texas.  Some  of  these  still  lingered  in  the  Illinois  coun- 
try in  the  capacity  of  settlers,  traders,  or  voyageurs.  The  route 
had  become  familiar,  and  civilized  communities  had  been  form- 
ed at  several  points  upon  the  Illinois  and  Mississippi.  Before 
the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century, "  Old  Kaskaskia"  had  been 
founded  in  the  "  terrestrial  paradise,"  and  many  desired  to  leave 
Canada  to  enter  its  delightful  abodes.  Missionary  stations  had 
grown  into  regular  parishes.  They  had  been  formed  on  the 
Illinois  as  high  as  Peoria  Lake,  and  Fathers  Gravier  and  Ma- 
rest  had  long  had  the  care  of  their  little  flock ;  and  up  to  the 
year  1705,  they  had  a  colony  of  converted  Indians  near  Lake 
Peoria,  who  shared  their  apostolic  care.  Nor  were  other 
points  west  and  south  of  the  Illinois  country  neglected.  Kas- 
kaskia  had  already  become  a  populous  and  happy  village,  and 
other  settlements  and  towns  were  rapidly  rising  into  note. 
Missionaries,  at  this  early  day,  had  penetrated  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, and  south  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  Red  River.  Fathers 
Montigny  and  Davion  had  visited  the  Yazoo  and  Tansas  In- 
dians, and  had  established  a  missionary  station  near  the  prom- 
ontory of  Fort  Adams,  which  for  many  years  afterward  was 
known  as  "  La  Roche  h.  Davion."  St.  Com6  had  likewise  es- 
tablished a  mission  among  the  Natchez  Indians.^ 

"  Martin's  Looiiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  14S-1.S3. 


A.D.  1700.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


159 


Such  had  been  the  inveterate  hostility  of  the  Five  Nations  until 
this  time,  that  the  whole  region  south  of  the  lakes,  from  Fort 
Frontenac  to  Green  Bay,  was  a  savage  wilderness,  traversed 
only  by  a  few  hardy  traders  and  missionaries.  Not  a  French 
village  or  settlement  existed  south  of  the  great  lakes,  from  the 
St.  Lawrence  to  the  Illinois  country  on  the  west.  Yet  many  of 
the  Western  tribes  were  kind  and  hospitable  to  the  French  em- 
igrants, and  mutual  confidence  prevailed.  Amity  was  con- 
firmed by  treaties  formally  made  with  the  principal  tribes.  In 
the  summer  of  the  year  1700,  the  Ottawas  and  Hurons  from 
Mackinaw  assembled  at  Montreal ;  and  the  four  upper  nations 
of  the  Iroquois  "  sent  deputies  to  Montreal  to  weep  for  the 
French  who  had  fallen  in  the  war."*  After  a  rapid  negotia- 
tion, peace  was  ratified  between  the  Iroquois  on  one  side,  and 
France  and  her  Western  allies  on  the  other.  *'  A  written  treaty 
was  made,  to  which  each  nation  placed  for  itself  a  symbol : 
the  Senecas  and  Onondagas  drew  a  spider ;  the  Cayugas,  a 
calumet;  the  Oneidas,  a  forked  stick;  and  the  Mohawks,  a 
bear."  It  was  declared,  also, "  that  war  should  cease  between 
the  French  allies  and  the  Sioux ;  that  peace  should  reach  be- 
yond the  Mississippi."! 

Thus  did  France  open  the  way  for  the  peaceful  extension  of 
her  settlements  into  the  western  parts  of  Upper  Canada.  "  In 
the  summer  of  1701,  in  the  month  of  June,  De  la  Motte  Ca- 
dillac, with  a  Jesuit  missionary  and  one  hundred  men,  took 
possession  of  the  site  of  Detroit,  and  formed  a  settlement"  on 
the  beautiful  river  of  the  lakes.  "  The  country  on  the  Detroit 
River  and  Lake  St.  Clair  was  deemed  the  loveliest  in  Cana- 
da." France  now  claimed  all  the  country  south  of  the  lakes, 
and  upon  all  the  streams  occupied  by  the  tribes  in  alliance 
with  her,  and  comprising  all  the  territory  drained  by  the  lakes 
and  the  St.  Lawrence ;  and  this  extensive  region  was  called 
Canada,  or  New  France. 

The  jealousy  and  bigotry  of  England  never  slept.  No  eflfort 
was  omitted  which  might  stir  up  hostilities  between  the  "  Five 
Nations"  and  the  French  of  Canada.  New  York  claimed  all 
the  territory  south  of  Lake  Ontario ;  and  the  provincial  gov- 
ernment looked  with  jealous  suspicion  upon  all  friendly  inter- 
course between  the  Indians  and  the  French  traders  or  mission- 
aries.   In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1700,  after  the  treaty  of 

*  Bancroft's  Hist,  of  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  193.  t  Idem,  p.  194. 


TU- 


u\o 


iiiH'i'ouv  «)i'  Tiin 


[hook  II. 


IMoiilroal  with  tout-  of  ilio  liotpiois  iiiitionH.  in  llir  holiof  tlitit 
"llio  inlhu'iioo  ol'  llio  .IrNnils  ^ivvo  to  l-'iiiiu'o  ilH  only  povvor 
ov»M'  tlu>  I'ivo  NnlioiiN,  llio  l.o^'inliituit'  of  Now  York  iitudo  ti 
Inw  (or  linnurinK  <*viMy  popiNli  |iiioNl  thiil  nIioiiM  couw  voImu- 
tiuily  inlt»  iho  provinro."*  TIun  iniglit  lio  Niiiil  to  l>o  tlir  liiNl 
««•!  of  l«>i,jislnlivo  iiilolorauro  in  Now  York. 

|,\.l>.  nt)fi.)  '''!»o  oltlor  MnnpiiH  «lo  Viuulioiiil  was  nr\v 
i^ttvornoi'  t)f  Ctintitla,  and  had  lost  no  oppoitiuiily  lor  soirurinf^ 
tho  IriiMidslup  of  llio  Five  Nations  of  Now  York.  Tlio  lorn- 
NVt<storn  nations  south  of  Liiko  Onliirit>  still  lulhorod  to  tho 
Fiout'h  iuloiosts.  'I'ho  Mohuwks  and  8«>nio  I'wvslorn  towns 
alouo  wvMV  undor  Hritish  intluonoo. 

(,\.l>,  niv!.|  Mutual  ftioudship  and  ('oididon«'o  coutinuod 
hotwoou  tho  I'louoh  and  all  tho  Wostorn  trihos;  andouu^iauts 
tVoiu  tho  St.  Lawrouoo  oontimuul  to  advauoo,  hy  way  of  tho 
lakos.  to  IVtroit,  and  to  tho  Illinois  oountiy.  'r«>wns  hud 
grown  up  uoar  tho  uussiouary  stations  and  tiading-p<»sts:  "i)Ul 
Kaskaskia"  had  hooonu' tlu'oapital  of  iho  Illinois  ootuitiy.  As 
oaily  as  iho  yoar  llVi,  lan«l-titlos  woro  issuod  lor  u  "immuuioii 
tiold"  at  Kaskaskiu ;  and  «lootls  an«l  litlos  ouiuo  in  uso  to  tles- 
iputto  tho  acquisitions  o\'  privato  outorpriso.  Tho  tradors  had 
nlroa«ly  opouod  ii  oon\nuMo6  ii\  skins  and  furs  with  tho  roujolt> 
port  of  Islo  l>auphit\.  in  iMi>l)ilo  Hay.  Intoroourso  was  opouod 
l»otwoon  (.^uohoc  of  tho  North  and  tho  infant  oolouy  of  Louisi- 
a»»a  iu  iho  S»»uth ;  tho  latter  boing  u  ilopoudonoo  of  ("anada,  or 
Now  I'rauoo. 

[.\.l>.  ni,M.]  Knjjhuul,  in  1711,  hail  tloolarod  war  ui^ainst 
Franoo,  and  vainly  oudotivorod  to  rostriot  hor  protousious  s(»uth 
of  tho  St.  Kawronoo  an»l  tho  Fjastoru  lakos.  AK)ni;  tho  Allautio 
otvisi  war  hail  boon  waijoti,  with  altornato  suiH'oss,  bolwoou  tho 
oolonios  o(  Now  l'.ni:lanil  and  o(  Now  Franco ;  and  oaoh  woro 
ai«lod  by  thoir  savago  allios  rospootivoly.  Hut  in  tho  NVost, 
Franco  had  triuuiphod  tnor  Indian  hostility,  until  F.nglish  :tnd 
I\l«>hawk  oiuissarios  had  ponotratod  to  tho  Far  Wost,  to  oxoifo 
tho  rostloss  Ali::i>u«iuins  to  war  against  thoui.  With  none  of 
thoso  was  poaoo  i\ioro  uuoortain  than  with  tho  C^ttoganiios,  or 
Foxos.  "a  nation  passii>nato  and  utitaiuablo,  springing  into  now 
lilo  tVon\  every  defeat,  and  although  reduced  in  the  nunibor  of 
tJieir  warriors,  yet  pivsent  every  where,  by  their  ferocious 
enterprise  and  savage  daring."     It  was  not  until  the  year  1713 

•  BwioToft'i  U.  Statcf,  >-ol.  iii.,  p.  UH. 


t 

n 

tl 

8( 
O 

w 


"* ; 


lv_ 


A.I).  I71U.1 


VAM.KY    or    TIIV!    MIHHIHHIi'l'l. 


\m 


timt  tliry  wriit  liimlly  nuIxIuimI.  lloNolvin/^  Ui  burn  Doti-oil, 
tliny  liiiii  |)itr.lHMl  IIkmi'  lodgiii^rs  iioiir  llio  fort,  wliir.li  M.  Diilm- 
iNsoii,  with  ImiI.  tw(Mity  I'liMirliiiini,  (lofiMKitMl.  Avviirc  ot'tlirir 
intnitioii,  lir  Hiinitiioiiril  IiIn  liuliiui  ullirs  tVoiii  tlir  clmNif;  niid 
iihuiit  tlin  iniilillo  of  IVIay,  OtlnvvAH  iiikI  IIiiioiih,  I'otiivvntiiinics 
mill  oiu;  hnincli  of  llio  Siic.kN,  lllitioiN,  McnornoninN,  and  t^vv.u 
{.hii^vf*  uimI  Mi,MHouriN,  etu'.li  niition  with  ItH  own  (Misi^'ii,  r.mnu 
to  his  I'ohrf.  So  widu  won  thn  inthuMicu  oftho  iniNHioimrirH  in 
lh«  VVosl.  "  Fiithor,"  naid  tht^y,  "  huhohl  thy  rhildnui  i'-oiii|)iihh 
iheo  uroiiiid.  Wo  will,  if  iiood  ho,  ghully  dio  for  our  liithor; 
only  takt)  euro  of  our  wivos  and  our  ohildron,  and  Nproad  a 
liltio  ^M'UNH  ovor  our  hodioH,  to  proloct.  thoni  a^'aiuHl  iho  llios." 

"  Tho  warriors  of  iho  l''ox  nation,  far  froni  dostntying  Do- 
troit,  woro  thonisolvtt.s  hosio^od,  an<l  at  last  conipollod  to  sur- 
rondor  at  discrrotifni.  Thoso  who  horo  arms  woro  rulhlossly 
nuu'durod  ;  tiio  n^st  woro  distrihutod  ainon^  tht;  rord'odoratos  as 
slavos,  to  be  savod  or  niassacrod  at  tlio  will  of  their  niastors."* 

[A. I).  1711).]  Population  was  oxlon<ling  fn^ni  JVIcthilo  upon 
the  MisslHsippi ;  and  soon  ai'tor,  M.  ('ro/at  rocoivod  tho  mo- 
nopoly uf  trado  in  Louisiana;  his  trading-|>osts  woro  (^stah' 
lishod  in  the  Illinois  country,  an<l  trado  hogan  to  assiuno  the 
rogular  channels  of  coinniorce.  Under  tho  Wostorn  (Jompany, 
soon  afterward,  I'hilippe  Francis  Renault,  "directiM-general 
(d'the  mines  of  Louisiana,"  with  two  hundred  miners  and  arti- 
ficers, arrived  in  the  Illinois  <!ountry.  'J'his  arrival  /,'ave  a 
gre.it  ac(^ession  to  the  French  population,  and  introduced  many 
useful  mechanic's  into  tho  settlements.  Illinois  was  deemed  by 
the  company  to  be  a  region  of  mines  immensely  valuable,  which 
were  to  enrich  the  capitalists  of  Europe. 

Fortunately,  the  liopes  of  the  company  concerning  the  valu- 
able pro<lucts  of  the  mines  were  (loomed  to  diKaj)pointment, 
and  tho  public  mind  was  <livected  more  intensely  to  agriculture. 
Mines  there  were,  of  iron,  lead,  copper,  and  perhaps  (d*  silver 
and  gold  ;  but  they  were  reserved  for  a  race  oi'  men  who  were 
to  live  a  century  after  the  dissolution  of  the  company,  when 
monopolies  should  cease.  The  richest  mines  of  the  country,  at 
this  early  period,  were  found  in  the  prolific  and  inexh.'iustible 
soil,  which  was  free  to  the  industry  of  all  classes.  Thus  an 
overruling  Providence  shaped  the  destiny  of  the  country, 
which  was  to  become  the  granary  for  nations. 

*  Baiicroil'i  U.  titatos,  vol.  iii.,  p.  834. 

Vol.  L-  L 


162 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


fA.D.  1720.]  By  the  year  1720,  a  lucrative  trade  had 
sprung  up  between  the  Illinois  country  and  the  province  of 
Lower  Louisiana.  Not  only  the  furs  and  peltries  of  the  North- 
ern tribes,  but  the  grain,  flour,  and  other  agricultural  products 
of  the  Upper  Mississippi,  were  transported  down  the  river  to 
Mobile,  and  thence  to  the  West  Indies  and  to  Europe ;  and  in 
return,  the  luxuries  and  refinements  of  European  capitals  were 
carried  to  the  banks  of  the  Illinois  and  Kaskaskia  Rivers.'"' 

Agriculture  had  been  early  introduced  around  the  missiona- 
ry stations  upon  the  Illinois  and  at  •.♦  Old  Kaskaskia,"  and  many 
of  the  grains  of  Europe  had  been  naturalized  to  the  climate. 
Wheat  had  been  found  to  succeed  well  as  a  staple  product. 
The  maize,  or  Indian  corn,  was  in  its  native  soil.  The  culina- 
ry vegetables  of  the  Old  World,  as  well  as  of  the  New,  yielded 
a  most  abundant  product.  The  forest  produced  the  native 
vine  in  great  profusion,  besides  many  luxuries  unknown  to 
Europe.  The  soil  was  productive  beyond  all  belief,  and  a 
moderate  toil  supplied  every  comfort,  and  richly  rewarded  the 
care  of  the  husbandman.  Compared  with  New.  France,  the 
climate  was  mild  in  summer,  and  the  rigors  of  a  Canadian 
winter  unknown.  In  such  a  region,  should  we  wonder  if,  in 
their  peaceful  and  contented  villages,  with  all  the  charities 
of  Christianity  to  soften  the  ills  of  life,  they  should  have  deem- 
ed this  region  a  "  terrestrial  paradise  ?" 

Nor  had  the  early  French  confined  their  discoveries  and 
settlements  to  the  Illinois  country.  As  early  as  the  year  1705, 
traders  and  hunters  had  penetrated  the  fertile  regions  of  the 
Wabash ;  and  from  this  region,  at  this  early  date,  fifteen  thou- 
sand hides  and  skins  had  been  collected,  and  sent  to  Mobile 
for  the  European  market.  In  the  year  1716,  the  French  pop- 
ulation on  the  Wabash  had  become  sufliciently  numerous  to 
constitute  an  important  settlement,  which  kept  up  a  lucrative 
trade  with  Mobile  by  means  of  traders  and  voyageurs.f  Nor 
was  the  route  from  Lake  Erie  unknown.  For  many  years 
this  route  had  been  familiar  to  the  voyageurs  and  courriers  du 
bois,  who  ascended  the  Miami  of  the  Lake  by  the  St.  Mary's 
branch,  and,  after  a  portage  of  three  leagues,  passed  the  sum- 
mit level,  and  floated  down  a  shallow  branch  of  the  Wabash. 
In  the  year  1718  this  route  had  been  used  for  two  years  ;J  for 
it  was  established  in  the  year  1716. 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  164-188.  t  Idem. 

\  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  346. 


A.D.  1720.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISaiSStPPL 


163 


At  this  early  period  the  Ohio  River  was  comparatively  un- 
knovi'n,  and  all  that  portion  below  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash 
was  known  as  the  continuation  of  the  Wabash  River.  The 
Ohio,  above  that  point,  was  known,  only  by  report,  as  the 
"  River  of  the  Iroquois,"  which  was  often  called  the  Hoio  by 
the  Indians.  In  the  French  maps  of  that  day,  the  Ohio  River 
did  not  occupy  half  the  space  allotted  to  the  Illinois.  Father 
Hennepin,  in  his  early  missionary  labors,  and  a  few  other  dar- 
ing missionaries,  had  visited  some  of  the  northern  tributaries 
of  the  Ohio  before  the  exploration  of  the  Mississippi,  under  the 
direction  of  La  Salle ;  but  such  had  been  the  implacable  hos- 
tility of  the  Iroquois  confederacy  to  the  French  colonists,  that 
the  greater  portion  of  the  Ohio  River  was  imperfectly  known 
for  nearly  forty  years  after  the  first  exploration  of  the  Missis- 
sippi. 

Settlements  continued  to  be  formed  upon  the  Mississippi  be- 
low the  mouth  of  the  Illinois,  and  France  resolved  to  circum- 
vent the  English  provinces  on  the  Atlantic  coast  by  a  cordon 
of  military  posts,  from  the  lakes  of  Canada  on  the  north  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico  on  the  south,  as  first  suggested  by  La  Salle  him- 
self, on  his  visit  to  Paris  in  the  year  1684.  His  plans  were 
now  about  to  be  adopted,  for  the  purpose  of  occupying  the 
great  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  before  any  Englishman  had 
crossed  the  mountains  from  their  Atlantic  colonies.  This 
same  year  the  commandant  on  the  Illinois,  M.  Boisbriant,  re- 
moved his  headquarters  to  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  twenty- 
five  miles  below  the  village  of  Kaskaskia.* 

The  first  important  step  in  the  accomplishment  of  this  great 
object  was  taken  in  the  year  1720.  Near  the  close  of  this  year, 
arrangements  were  made  for  the  construction  of  a  strong  for- 
tress in  the  Illinois  country,  to  serve  as  the  headquarters  of 
Upper  Louisiana.  The  site  had  been  selected,  and  Fort  Char- 
tres  was  begun,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi,  about  sixty- 
five  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri.  It  was  designed 
by  the  ministers  to  be  one  of  the  strongest  fortresses  on  the 
continent,  and  its  walls  were  built  of  strong  and  solid  mason- 
ry. At  the  end  of  eighteen  months,  and  after  great  labor  and 
expense.  Fort  Chartres  was  completed.  Its  massy  ruins,  one 
hundred  years  afterward,  were  overgrown  with  vines  and  for 
est-trees,  almost  impenetrable  to  the  traveler. 

*  See  Martin's  Loaiaiana,  toL  i.,  p.  234. 


164 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


[A.D.  1725.]  Soon  after  the  construction  of  Fort  Chartres, 
the  villages  of  Cahokia,  Prairie  du  Rocher,  and  some  others, 
sprung  into  note  in  its  vicinity.  All  the  settlements  from  the 
Illinois  to  the  Kaskaskia  continued  to  extend  and  multiply. 
In  the  year  1721,  the  Jesuits  had  established  a  monastery  and 
a  college  in  the  village  of  Kaskaskia.  Four  years  afterward, 
the  village  of  Kaskaskia  became  a  chartered  town ;  and  a 
grant  of  Louis  XV.  guarantied  the  "  commons"  as  the  pasture- 
grounds  for  the  stock  of  the  town.  Emigrants,  under  the  fa- 
vor and  protection  of  the  crown,  continued  to  settle  the  fertile 
region  of  the  "  American  Bottom,"  and  Fort  Chartres  became, 
not  only  the  headquarters  of  the  commandant  in  Upper  Lou- 
isiana, but  the  center  of  life  and  fashion  in  the  West.  It  was 
for  many  years  the  most  celebrated  fortress  in  all  the  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi. 

Although  the  French  had  made  but  little  advance  upon  the 
upper  tributaries  of  the  Ohio,  yet  they  had  obtained  a  footing 
in  the  Iroquois  country,  south  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  east  of  Ni- 
agara River,  early  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Missionaries 
and  traders  had  penetrated  into  the  interior  as  far  as  the  sources 
of  the  Alleghany  River.  Joncaire,  a  French  trader  and  agent, 
had  been  many  years  in  the  country  south  of  the  west  end  of 
Ontario;  and  in  the  year  1721  he  had  been  adopted  as  a  Sene- 
ca, and  built  his  house  on  the  site  of  Lewistown,  where  La 
Salle  had  erected  his  rude  palisade  forty  years  before.  He 
had  acquired  the  confidence  of  the  Senecas,  and  exerted  great 
influence  over  them.*  In  1726  Fort  Niagara  was  built,  near 
the  mouth  of  Niagara  River,  and  the  French  flag  waved  over 
its  walls,  the  key  to  Lake  Erie. 

Although  the  English  had  not  crossed  the  mountains,  they 
had  early  disputed  with  France  her  claim  to  the  territory  west 
of  Lake  Champlain  and  south  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  In  the 
treaty  of  Ryswick,  in  1697,  England  had  failed  to  obtain  from 
France  a  relinquishment  of  her  dominion  over  the  territory 
lying  south  of  the  St.  Lawrence  River  and  Lake  Ontario. 
Ten  years  afterward,  the  French  and  English  provinces  were 
engaged  in  a  sanguinary  war,  which  was  terminated  by  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht  in  1713.  This  treaty  had  left  the  southern 
limit  of  Canada  unchanged,  and  the  Iroquois  confederacy  more 
firm  in  their  adherence  to  the  French  interests.     French  trad- 

*  Bancroft's  U.  Btatei,  vol.  iii.,  p.  341. 


A.D.  1735.] 


VALLEY    OF  THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


165 


1 


ers  and  Jesuit  missionaries  had  free  intercourse  among  many 
of  the  Western  bands  and  tribes,  as  well  as  among  those  upon 
the  head  waters  of  the  Alleghany  River ;  and  while  the  Eng- 
lish agent,  Burnet,  had  built  a  trading-post  at  Oswego,  near 
the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Ontario,  in  1722,*  the  French  were 
extending  trading-posts  and  missions  along  the  shores  of  Lake 
Champlain,  and  as  far  south  as  Lake  George,  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  province  of  New  York,  as  well  as  upon  many  of 
the  southern  tributaries  of  Lakes  Erie  and  Ontario.  As  early 
as  the  year  1724,  settlements  had  been  extended  as  far  as 
Crown  Point,  on  the  west  side  of  Champlain ;  and  this  point 
was  strongly  fortified  in  1727.f  Four  years  after,  in  1731, 
Ticonderoga,  on  the  west  side  of  the  lake,  was  a  strong  French 
fortress ;  and  the  Mohawks  looked  upon  the  French  as  their 
allies  and  protectors. 

The  feeling  of  the  Five  Nations  toward  the  English  had  been 
more  or  less  alienated,  since  the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  by  the  ad- 
dition of  another  n<ation  to  the  confederacy.  This  was  the 
hostile  part  of  the  Tuscaroras,  from  the  western  part  of  North 
Carolina.  The  Tuscaroras  were  once  a  formidable  tribe  ;  but 
having  been  embroiled  in  hostilities  with  the  English  of  Caro- 
lina, and  having  their  power  weakened  and  their  tribe  divided 
by  British  intrigue,  the  hostile  party  left  their  country,  to  join 
their  kindred  in  the  western  part  of  New  York.  They  arrived 
there  late  in  the  summer  of  1713 ;  and  having  been  welcomed 
by  the  confederates,  they  settled  in  the  vicinity  of  Oneida  Lake, 
and  were  adopted  into  the  confederacy  as  the  sixth  nation. 
Harassed  as  they  had  been  by  the  English  of  Carolina,  they 
were  not  likely  to  form  any  alliance  with  them  in  New  York.J 
From  this  time  the  confederacy  w  a  known  as  the  "  Six  Na- 


tions. 

[A.D.  1735.]  The  settlements  upon  the  Illinois  and  Wabash 
Rivers  continued  to  increase,  and  were  successively  protected 
by  military  posts.  In  the  year  1735  the  post  of  Vincennes  was 
erected,  and  in  later  times  was  called  Post  St.  Vincent.§  For 
many  years  it  was  an  important  military  station.  It  was  sit- 
uated on  the  bank  of  the  Wabash,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
above  its  mouth,  and  was  designed  to  command  the  lower  set- 
tlements.    The  upper  settlements  at  this  time  were  sparsely 


*  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  342. 
t  Idem,  p.  323. 


t  Idem,  p.  193, 194. 
$  Idem,  p.  346. 


Km 


IIIHTORY    Oy  TUB 


[dook  II. 


difltributed  upon  the  river  nnd  itH  tributaries,  nearly  three  hun* 
dred  miles  above  Vinc-enneH. 

[A. I).  1740.]  The  year  174()  found  the  French  settlenicnta 
extending  south  tVoni  Lake  Erie,  upon  its  southern  tributariest 
and  upon  the  sources  of  the  Ohio.  Forts  and  military  posts  be- 
gan to  appear  along  the  northern  bank  of  the  Ohio,  and  gener- 
ally near  the  junction  of  it»  principal  tributaries.  I'resque  Isle, 
upon  the  present  site  of  Erie,  in  Pennsylvania,  became  a  mili- 
tary post  almost  coeval  with  that  of  St.  Vincent  on  the  Wa- 
bash. From  Presque  Isle  a  chain  of  posts  extended  down  the 
Alleghany  to  the  junction  of  the  Monongahela,  and  thence  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Wabash. 

[A.D.  1740.]  In  the  year  1740,  agriculture  on  the  Wabasli 
was  still  flourishing,  and  the  same  year  six  hundred  barrels  of 
flour  were  manufactured  and  shipped  to  the  city  of  New  Or- 
leans, besides  large  quantities  of  hides,  peltry,  tallow,  and 
bees'  wax.*  The  Upper  Wabash,  almost  to  its  source,  had  be- 
come the  seat  of  a  large  settlement  of  quiet,  industrious  people, 
who  were  mainly  devoted  to  agriculture,  but  enjoying  also  the 
bounty  of  nature,  found  profusely  in  the  forests,  as  well  as  in 
the  beautiful  lakes  and  rivers.  The  climate  here,  like  that 
on  the  Illinois,  was  more  congenial  than  was  to  be  found  in  the 
regions  of  Canada. 

The  settlements  in  the  Illinois  country  continued  to  increase. 
Those  on  the  Illinois  alone,  in  the  year  1730,  embraced  one 
hundred  and  forty  French  families,  besides  about  six  hundred 
converted  Indians,!  many  traders,  voyageurs,  and  courtiers  du 
hois.  The  Jesuit  college  at  Kaskaskia  con'iiiiued  to  flourish, 
until  the  irruption  of  hostilities  with  Great  Britain. 

[A.D.  1749.]  It  was  not  until  the  year  1749  that  the  French 
authorities  regularly  explored  the  Ohio  River,  to  ascertain  its 
distance  and  relative  position  to  the  Atlantic  colonies  of  Great 
Britain.  They  now  explored  the  country  east  of  the  Ohio,  and 
upon  its  tributaries  eastwtird  to  their  sources  in  the  Alleghany 
Mountains.  Alliances  of  friendship  and  trade  were  formed 
with  the  various  tribes  and  towns  west  of  the  mountains,  J  and 
within  the  western  portions  of  the  provinces  of  New  York, 
Pennsylvania,  and  Virginia,  as  claimed  under  their  royal  char- 
ters. 


*  Martin's  Louiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  316. 

X  See  Stoddart's  Sketches  of  Louiaiana,  p.  66. 


t  North  American  Review 


A.D.   1751.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MIH8IHHII>PI. 


107 


I 


Iw 


[A.ly.  1750.]  The  ever- watchful  eye  of  En^hind  ha<l  been 
directed  to  the  rapid  extension  of  the  French  settlements  south 
and  west  of  the  lakes.  The  court  of  St.  James  became  impatient 
again  to  measure  arms  with  France  in  America,  to  cross  the 
Alleghany  Mountains,  and  to  contend  for  the  fertile  and  boimd- 
less  valleys  of  the  West.  The  settlements  of  the  English  prov- 
inces were  as  yet  restricted  to  a  narrow  and  comparatively 
unproductive  strip  of  territory  east  of  those  mountains,  and 
England  pretended  to  claim  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
She  sought  every  occasion  to  enlist  the  savages  in  her  interest, 
and  to  incite  them  to  hostilities  against  the  French.  She  took 
steps  to  rouse  her  colonies  into  a  provincial  war  in  the  West,  in 
hope  of  curtailing  the  growing  power  of  France  in  the  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi.  To  stimulate  personal  interest  and  individ- 
ual enterprise,  a  large  grant  had  already  been  made  to  the 
"  Ohio  Company,"  to  be  located  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio  Riv- 
er, to  the  extent  of  six  hundred  thousand  acres  of  choice  lands. 

The  French  did  not  recede  from  their  possessions,  but  ad- 
vanced upon  the  "  River  of  the  Iroquois,"  which  to  their  de- 
lighted eyes  became  the  "  Belle  Riviere"  of  the  West.  The 
Iroquois  confederacy  had  now  become  reconciled  to  the  French, 
and  many  were  willing  to  join  them  in  resisting  the  claims  and 
encroachments  of  the  English  provinces  west  of  the  mountains. 

[A.D.  1761.]  Up  to  this  time,  the  "  Illinois  country,"  east  ^ 
of  the  Upper  Mississippi,  contained  six  distinct  settlements, 
with  their  respective  villages.  These  were,  1.  Cahokia,  near 
the  mouth  of  Cahokia  Creek,  and  nearly  five  miles  below  the 
present  site  of  St.  Louis ;  2.  St.  Philip,  forty-five  miles  below 
the  last,  and  four  miles  above  Fort  Chartres,  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Mississippi ;  3.  Fort  Chartres,  on  the  east  bank  of  the 
Mississippi,  twelve  miles  above  Kaskaskia  ;  4.  Kaskaskia,  sit- 
uated upon  the  Kaskaskia  River,  five  miles  above  its  mouth, 
upon  a  peninsula,  and  within  two  miles  of  the  Mississippi  Riv- 
er ;  5.  Prairie  du  Rocher,  near  Fort  Chartres ;  6.  St.  Gene- 
vieve, on  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi,  and  about  one  mile 
from  its  bank,  upon  Gabarre  Creek.  These  are  among  the 
oldest  towns  in  what  was  long  known  as  the  Illinois  country. 
Kaskaskia  in  its  best  days,  under  the  French  regime,  was  quite 
a  large  town,  containing  two  or  three  thousand  inhabitants. 
But  after  it  passed  from  the  crown  of  France,  its  population  for 
many  years  did  not  exceed  fifteen  hundred  souls.     Under  the 


I   I 


108 


III8T0RY    or    THE 


[douk  11. 


British  dominion  the  population  decreased  to  four  hundred  and 
sixty  souls,  in  1773. 

[A.D.  1763.]  The  French  court  was  well  aware  of  the  im- 
portance of  the  great  Western  valley.  It  was  now  known  that 
if  there  were  no  rich  mines  of  gold  and  silver  north  of  the  Ohio 
and  east  of  the  Mississippi,  there  was  a  more  inexhaustible  mine 
in  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  mildness  of  the  climate.  A 
spirit  of  agricultural  industry  had  been  infused  into  the  Western 
settlements ;  in  a  few  years  more.  Upper  Louisiana,  which  em- 
braced the  Ohio  region,  might  become  the  store-house  for 
France  and  Western  Europe.  These  advantages  were  not  to 
be  lost  without  an  effort.  Nor  was  the  court  of  Versailles  un- 
apprised of  the  determination  of  England  to  secure  to  herself 
these  valuable  resources.  Jealous  of  every  movement  of  the 
French  toward  the  "  Belle  Riviere,"  the  British  government 
protested  against  the  occupation  of  the  territories  south  of  the 
lakes,  which  they  claimed  as  a  part  of  their  Atlantic  provinces. 
The  French  had  explored  a  portion  of  the  country  more  than 
half  a  century  before,  and  their  colonies  on  the  Illinois  and  Mis- 
sissippi were  more  than  fifty  years  old,  while  the  English  had 
not  a  single  settlement  west  of  the  mountains.  France  was  re- 
solved to  establish  her  claim  by  actual  possession  and  military 
occupation.  The  Marquis  of  Duquesne,  governor  of  Canada, 
determined  to  secure  the  beautiful  region  on  the  head  waters 
of  the  Alleghany  River,  and  south  of  Lake  Erie.  Presque  Isle 
was  strongly  fortified ;  a  fort  was  erected  at  Lake  Le  Beuf^ 
fifteen  miles  from  Presque  Isle ;  another,  superintended  by  Le- 
gardeur  St.  Pierre,  a  knight  of  St.  Louis,  w^s  built  at  the  mouth 
of  French  Creek,  known  as  Fort  Venango.*  Others  were  in  a 
state  of  progression  on  the  Sandusky  River,  and  at  suitable 
points  on  the  Ohio.  The  Governor  of  New  France  determined 
not  only  to  hold  military  possession  of  the  country,  but  likewise 
to  restrict  the  English  settlements  to  the  eastern  side  of  the 
mountains. 

The  ministers  of  the  British  crown  had  watched  with  jealous 
apprehension  the  advances  of  the  French  fi'om  Canada  to  the 
Ohio  River.  Border  wars  and  disturbances  began  to  spring 
up  between  the  subjects  of  the  respective  powers.  England, 
desirous  of  enlisting  individual  interest  and  enterprise  in  set- 
tling the  Ohio  country,  had  made  a  liberal  oflfer  of  lands  west 

*  Martin's  Looiiiana,  vol  i.,  p.  .322. 


A.D.  1753.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MI8HIHHIPPI. 


IGO 


of  the  mountains.  The  "  Ohio  Coin|inny,"  formed  of  wealthy 
gentlemen  chiefly  from  Virginia,  prepared  to  locate  their  grant 
of  six  hundred  thousand  acres  in  select  tracts  on  the  waters  of 
the  Monongahela,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Ohio  itself,  in(!lud- 
ing  a  portion  of  the  region  already  occupied  hy  the  French.* 
At  this  time  no  English  settlement  existed  west  of  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,  although  traders  and  emissaries  from  Virginia  had 
occasionally  traversed  the  country.f 

The  French  now  held  actual  possession  of  all  the  northern 
and  western  portions  of  New  York,  along  the  southern  shores 
of  the  St.  Lawrence,  of  Lakes  Ontario  and  Erie,  hesides  all  the 
eastern  and  western  shores  of  Lake  Clmmplain,  and  northward 
to  the  St.  Lawrence.  The  former  allies  of  the  English  were 
still  in  the  French  interest,  from  the  Niagara  to  the  Wabash. 
The  English  colonies  were  restricted  to  the  Green  Mountains 
in  the  north  and  to  the  Alleghany  ranges  in  the  south,  as  their 
western  boundaries.  Crown  Point  and  Ticonderoga,  on  Lake 
Champlaln,  were  then  strong  French  posts.  In  Virginia  but 
few  settlements  had  extended  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge.  The 
site  of  the  old  town  of  Winchester  was  then  a  dense  forest,  al- 
though Virginia  claimed  jurisdiction  westward  to  the  Missis- 
sippi. The  remote  frontier  post  of  "  Fort  Cumberland,"  in 
Maryland,  had  not  been  erected,  and  the  route  by  Will's  Creek 
was  scarcely  known.  All  beyond  and  to  the  west  was  a  sav 
age  wilderness,  except  the  French  settlements  on  the  north  side 
of  the  Ohio. 

Although  the  British  provinces  claimed  westward  to  the 
Mississippi,  the  whole  region  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge  was  un- 
known to  them  except  by  rumor,  and  the  statements  of  a  few 
traders  or  emissaries,  who,  at  remote  intervals,  had  visited  the 
West.  Occasionally  adventurers  from  Pennsylvania  and  New 
York  had  penetrated  to  the  Miami  Indians  for  the  purpose  of 
trade,  or  from  a  native  propensity  for  solitary  rambles. 

The  "  Ohio  Company,"  which  had  been  formed  as  early  as 
1748,  now  dispatched  Christopher  Gist,  a  frontier  settler,  as  an 
agent,  to  explore  the  country,  and  to  report  the  result  of  his 
explorations  and  discoveries.  As  a  pretext  for  this  arduous 
and  dangerous  enterprise,  he  was  sent  in  the  capacity  of  a 
trader,  whose  ostensible  object  was  to  carry  on  a  friendly  traf- 

*  Sparks's  Writing!  of  Washington,  vol.  i.  j  also  voL  ii.,  Appendix, "  Ohio  Company." 
t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  160. 


170 


HISTOfiY    or   THE 


[book  II. 


fick  with  the  Indians,  but  in  fact  to  gain  over  their  good-will 
to  the  EngUsh,  by  presents  of  guns,  ammunition,  and  trinkets, 
whereby  a  neutrality,  if  not  an  alliance,  might  be  secured  in 
case  ot  any  collision  between  the  English  and  French  colonies. 
But  the  principal  object  of  Mr.  Gist's  visit  was  to  spy  out  the 
movements  and  plans  of  the  French,  and  the  state  of  feeling 
among  the  tribes.  For  this  purpose,  he  penetrated  by  land  to 
the  Ohio  River,  and  thence  down  that  stream  as  far  as  the 
mouth  of  the  Great  Miami.*  Thence  he  explored  the  country 
near  the  Miami  as  far  north  as  the  towns  of  the  Twightwees, 
or  Miami  Indians,  whose  hunting-grounds  were  then  upon 
Loramie's  Creek,  about  fifty  miles  north  of  Dayton,  in  the  State 
of  Ohio. 

After  a  short  sojourn  among  these  western  Indians,  Gist  re- 
turned to  Virginia,  having  accomplished  but  little,  and  having 
acquired  but  little  satisfactory  information  relative  to  the  prin- 
cipal object  of  his  mission,  and  yet  not  without  serious  alarm 
for  his  personal  safety.f  He  represented  the  French  to  be  in 
great  force  on  the  southern  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  at  several 
points  from  Sandusky  River  to  Presque  Isle  ;  also  upon  French 
Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Alleghany  River.  Notwithstanding 
this  intelligence,  the  company  established  a  small  trading-post 
the  following  year  upon  Loramis's  Creek.  This,  however, 
was  soon  afterward  broken  up  by  the  French. 

For  several  years  the  provinces  of  Virginia,  Peimsylvania, 
and  New  York  had  been  much  agitated  by  the  advance  of  the 
French  south  of  Lake  Erie,  and  from  an  apprehension  of  hos- 
tilities by  the  Indian  tribes  within  the  territory  claimed  by 
those  provinces  respectively.  In  this  state  of  things,  the  Brit- 
ish minister,  apprehensive  of  a  rupture  in  this  quarter,  had  in- 
structed the  royal  governor  of  Virginia  to  build  two  forts  near 
the  Ohio  River,  for  the  double  purpose  of  keeping  the  French 
in  check,  and  of  securing  the  friendship  of  the  Indians  by  driv- 
ing off  lawless  intruders.  At  the  same  time,  thirty  pieces  of 
light  artillery  and  eighty  barrels  of  powder  were  shipped  from 
England  for  the  use  of  these  forts  when  constructed.  J  But  in 
this  England  was  too  late :  the  Governor  of  Canada  had  al- 
ready anticipated  this  movement  by  several  French  forts,  which 
commanded  the  country  north  and  west  of  the  Ohio. 


•  See  "  Cincinnati  in  1841,"  p.  14,  15.        t  Sparks'a  WritingB  of  Waahing:ton,voL  i. 
t  Sparks's  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  i.,  p.  21. 


A.D.  1753.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


171 


When  this  was  made  known  to  the  Governor  of  Virginia, 
he  resolved  to  take  a  decidrd  stand.  He  determined  first  to 
send  a  special  commissioner  to  remonstrate  witn  the  French 
commandant  south  of  the  lakes  against  the  encroachments 
made  by  the  French  posts  and  settlements  upon  the  territory 
claimed  by  his  Britannic  majesty.  Accordingly,  Major  George 
Washington  was  duly  commissioned,  and  sent  to  the  head- 
quarters of  the  French  commandant.  After  a  long  and  toil- 
some journey  through  an  uninhabited  wilderness,  he  reached 
Fort  Venango,  on  the  present  site  of  the  town  of  Franklin,  in 
the  State  of  Pennsylvania.  But  the  commandant  was  at  Lake 
le  Beuf,  whither  Major  Washington  proceeded  without  delay. 
He  had  been  instructed  to  demand  of  the  French  commandant 
the  objects  and  designs  of  his  government,  and  to  assert  the 
claims  of  Virginia  in  the  name  and  by  the  authority  of  the 
British  crown.  He  was  also  privately  instructed  to  examine 
carefully  and  report  such  points  in  his  route  as  were  suitable 
for  military  posts,  and  especially  "  the  Forks,"  or  the  point  at 
the  junction  of  the  Alleghany  and  Monongahela  Rivers. 

He  reached  the  headquarters  at  Le  Beuf  in  the  middle  of 
December,  and  laid  his  instructions  before  M.  de  St.  Pierre. 
But  little  satisfaction  was  obtained.  France  claimed  the  coun- 
try by  the  right  of  discovery  and  settlement,  as  well  as  by  mil- 
itary possession.  These  are  the  strongest  of  all  titles  to  a  sav- 
age country.  England  claimed  it  by  virtue  of  her  first  royal 
charters,  and  especially  that  of  Virginia,  which  extended  its 
limits  "  westward  to  the  South  Sea,"  or  Pacific  Ocean,  at  a 
time  when  the  distance  was  unknown,  and  was  supposed  to  be 
not  very  remote.  France  could  not  recognize  such  a  claim  in 
opposition  to  her  own. 

On  the  same  principle,  England  might  claim,  not  only  all  the 
lands  east  of  the  Mississippi,  but  those  also  beyond  it.  France 
admitted  the  claims  of  England  to  extend  westward  to  the 
sources  of  all  the  Atlantic  rivers,  and  even  to  the  most  western 
ranges  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains.  She  denied  that  Great 
Britain  could  justly  claim  beyond  that  limit,  especially  as  the 
country  had  been  discovered,  explored,  and  settled  by  colonies 
from  New  France  long  before  England  knew  of  such  a  coun- 
try as  the  Ohio  Valley. 

The  commissioner.  Major  Washington,  was  treated  with  the 
utmost  courtesy,  but  his  demands  were  disregarded.    In  re- 


172 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  II 


ply  to  the  demands  of  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  the  Chevalier 
M.  de  St.  Pierre,  commandant  south  of  the  lakes,  replied  in  the 
most  courteous  terms,  "  That  the  summons  could  not  be  com- 
plied with,  as  it  did  not  belong  to  him  to  discuss  treaties ;  that 
the  message  should  have  been  sent  to  the  Marquis  Duquesne, 
governor  of  New  France,  under  whose  instructions  he  acted, 
and  whose  orders  he  should  be  careful  to  obey."*  Washing- 
ton returned,  and,  after  a  tedious  and  difficult  journey,  mostly 
on  foot,  in  the  dead  of  winter,  reached  Williamsburg,  the  seat 
of  the  provincial  government,  on  the  16th  of  January,  1754. 

[A.D.  1754.]  The  result  of  the  mission  was  of  course  un- 
satisfactory. Governor  Dinwiddle  used  every  means  to  rouse 
the  patriotic  enthusiasm  and  the  indignation  of  the  people 
against  the  invaders  of  his  majesty's  dominions.  He  caused 
Major  Washington's  journal  to  be  published,  to  show  the  insid- 
ious designs  of  the  French,  and  no  means  were  left  untried  to 
excite  the  people  to  rise  and  expel  the  invaders.  Troops  were 
raised  by  calls  for  volunteers,  as  well  as  by  enliatments,  and  a 
liberal  bounty  in  lands  was  guarantied  to  the  soldiers.  Major 
Washington  was  commissioned  a  lieutenant  colonel  in  the  pro- 
vincial army ;  military  stores  and  munitions  were  collected  and 
pushed  forward  toward  the  frontiers :  a  military  post  was  built 
at  Will's  Creek,  and  known  as  Fort  Cumberland.! 

The  governors  of  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and 
North  Carolina  were  invoked  to  make  common  cause  against 
the  enemies  of  the  British  crown.  "  The  Ohio  Company,"  in 
which  the  governor  was  doubtless  deeply  interested,  lent  its 
utmost  aid  and  influence.  It  aided  to  push  forward  a  com- 
pany of  troops,  under  Captain  Trent,  to  take  possession  of  the 
country  near  the  Monongahela,  and  southward  to  the  Ohio. 

The  governor's  instructions  were  of  a  warlike  character : 
no  less  than  "  to  drive  away,  kill,  and  destroy,  or  seize  as  pris- 
oners all  persons  not  subjects  of  the  King  of  Great  Britain 
who  should  attempt  to  take  possession  of  lands  on  the  Ohio,  or 
any  of  its  tributaries."! 

Captain  Trent  detached  Lieutenant  Ward,  with  forty  men, 
to  occupy  and  fortify  "  the  Forks,"  or  point  of  land  immedi- 
ately above  the  junction  of  the  Alleghany  and  Monongahela 
Rivers.  This  point  had  been  recommended  by  Major  Wash- 
ington as  a  suitable  position  for  a  military  post,  and  it  had 

*  Sparks'B  Writings  of  Washington,  vol  i.,  p.  30.       t  Idem,  p.  30,  37.       {  Ibidem. 


A.D.  1754.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


173 


been  determined  to  occupy  it  with  a  fort  and  trading-post. 
Lieutenant  Ward  had  no  sooner  accomplished  the  object  for 
which  he  was  detached,  than  he  was  compelled  to  abandon 
the  enterprise  and  surrender  the  post  to  the  French.  The  lat- 
ter had  been  apprised  of  the  movements  from  the  provinces 
against  them,  as  well  as  of  the  small  force  which  had  been  ad- 
vanced to  the  Ohio  and  Monongahela.  They  resolved  to  de- 
feat such  designs,  and  to  prevent  the  occupation  of  the  country 
by  English  troops.  War  was  not  their  desire,  if  they  could 
maintain  their  rights  without  it. 

It  was  about  the  middle  of  April  that  the  bold  Contrecoeur 
descended  the  Alleghany  River  with  a  strong  force  of  French 
and  Indians.  The  alarm  of  the  detachment  under  Lieutenant 
Ward  magnified  the  hostile  force  to  one  thousand  French  and 
Indian  warriors,  with  a  fleet  of  three  hundred  canoes,  thirty 
barges,  and  eighteen  pieces  of  cann<>n.  Resistance  was  vain. 
Lieutenant  Ward  was  compelled  to  surrender  the  post  without 
a  semblance  of  defense.  The  French  desired  to  avoid  hostili- 
ties ;  and  Lieutenant  Ward  and  his  detachment  were  permitted 
quietly  to  evacuate  the  position,  and,  with  their  arms  and  mili- 
tary stores,  peaceably  to  return  to  the  frontier  post  of  Fort 
Cumberland.  The  French  commander  began  to  erect  a  regu- 
lar and  strong  fortification  at  "the  Forks,"  which  he  called 
"  Fort  Duquesne,"  in  honor  of  the  Governor  of  Canada  and 
New  France.  In  a  few  months  it  became  one  of  the  strongest 
fortified  places^jvest  of  the  mountains,  and  but  little  inferior  to 
Fort  Chartres  itself. 

The  result  of  Lieutenant  Ward's  expedition  caused  great 
excitement  in  Virginia  and  the  neighboring  provinces.  Troops 
were  expeditiously  raised  and  pushed  forward  to  Fort  Cum- 
berland. Virginia  determined  to  enforce  her  claims  by  an  ap- 
peal to  arms ;  and  she  was  well  assured  that  England  would 
rejoice  to  make  it  a  national  war.  England  had  long  sought 
occasion  to  humble  the  growing  power  of  her  rival  in  Noi'th 
America.  The  occasion  and  pretext  had  now  arrived.  France 
was  determined  not  to  yield,  unless  by  the  fate  of  arms,  to  the 
domineering  claims  of  Great  Britain.  She  accordingly  began 
the  construction  of  forts  in  most  of  the  prominent  points  south 
of  the  lakes  and  ntorth  of  the  Ohio.  In  each  new  post  was 
stationed  a  small  garrison;  others  were  re-enforced;  and  prep- 
arations were  made  daily  for  the  approaching  contest.    The 


174 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


Indian  tribes  were  conciliated ;  and  some  were  united  into  an 
alliance  offensive  and  defensive. 

The  provinces  were  in  a  state  of  high  excitement,  and  troops 
were  organizing  more  or  less  from  New  York  to  North  Caro- 
lina. A  strong  detachment  of  Virginia  troops,  under  Colonel 
Washington,  was  advanced  into  the  country  near  the  Monon- 
gahela.  At  the  Great  Meadows,  about  thirty  miles  southeast 
from  Fort  Duquesne,  Colonel  Washington  received  intelligence 
that  a  detachment  of  French  troops  from  Fort  Duquesne,  un- 
der M.  Jumonville,  were  reconnoitering  the  country,  for  the 
purpose  of  capturing  such  English  as  might  have  entered  the 
disputed  territory.  This  detachment  consisted  of  fifty  men, 
including  some  Indians.  Colonel  Washington  sought  to  sur- 
prise this  small  force,  and  finally  succeeded  on  the  28th  of 
May.  M.  Jumonville  and  ten  of  his  men  were  killed,  and 
twenty-two  were  taken  prisoners ;  and  but  few  escaped.  This 
was  doubtless  a  rash  movement  on  the  part  of  Colonel  Wash- 
ington, and  scarcely  to  be  justified ;  for  the  French,  taken  by 
surprise,  were  not  inclined  to  resist.* 

The  French  account  of  this  affair,  which  is  uncontrovert- 
ed,  and  admitted  by  Mr.  Sparks,  declares  that  the  detach- 
ment of  M.  Jumonville  were  surprised  by  a  very  superior 
force,  while  totally  unconscious  that  an  enemy  was  near ;  that 
the  first  intimation  of  the  presence  of  any  hostile  force  was  a 
volley  from  their  fire-arms,  while  engaged  in  their  camp  du- 
ties; that  the  fire  was  repeated,  notwithstanding  their  sub- 
mission and  their  imploring  attitude,  until  they  were  compell- 
ed to  fire  in  self-protection,  by  which  the  Virginians  had  one 
man  killed  and  two  wounded.f 

The  disaster  of  M.  Jumonville's  detachment,  and  the  hostile 
attitude  of  the  provincial  troops,  were  soon  k^jiown  at  the  head- 
quarters of  the  French  commandant,  and  a  retaliation  and  re- 
prisal were  concerted.  No  delay  was  necessary  or  proper ; 
but  as  the  provincials  were  represented  in  great  force,  he 
deemed  it  proper  to  draw  re-enforcements  from  other  points 
nearer  the  lake  and  Presque  Isle.  Colonel  Washington,  ap- 
prehending an  attack  from  a  stronger  force,  immediately  fell 

*  Martin  em  greatly  in  reference  to  this  transaction.  He  says  Jumonville  alow 
was  killed,  and  all  the  party  surrendered ;  bat  the  account  by  Sparks,  in  his  "  Writ- 
ings of  Washington,"  gives  the  true  state  of  facts,  taken  from  the'French  archives, 
which  we  have  followed.    See  Sparks,  vol.  i.,  p.  36-40  j  also,  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  324. 

t  Snarks's  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  i.,  p.  46,  47. 


A.D.  1754.1 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


175 


back  to  the  Great  Meadows,  a  few  miles  west  of  Uniontown, 
and  near  the  western  side  of  the  Laurel  Ridge.  Here  he  erect- 
ed a  fortified  camp,  and  called  it  "  Fort  Necessity."  By  this 
time  he  received  a  re-enforcement,  which  augmented  his  force 
to  something  over  four  hundred  men.* 

Preparations  were  made  for  resisting  an  attack,  which  was 
daily  apprehended,  and  the  camp  was  protected  by  a  breast- 
work and  surrounded  by  a  ditch. 

On  the  3d  of  July,  early  in  the  morning,  the  French  and  In- 
dians made  their  appearance  before  the  fort  and  upon  the  ad- 
jacent hills ;  but  the  attack  was  not  commenced  until  about  ten 
o'clock  in  the  forenoon.  The  investing  force  consisted  of  about 
nine  hundred  men,  including  French  and  Indians,  under  the 
command  of  a  brother  of  M.  Jumonville,  M.  Villiers,  who  had 
left  Fort  Chartres  with  the  express  purpose  of  revenging  the 
death  of  his  brother. f  The  attack  was  urged  with  great  im- 
petuosity and  perseverance,  and  as  vigorously  resisted.  Dur- 
ing the  attack,  which  continued  until  sunset,  the  French  and 
Indians  fought  with  great  ardor  from  their  positions,  conceal- 
ed behind  trees,  or  lying  in  the  tall  grass  which  covered  the 
meadow.  The  Virginians  fought  partly  from  behind  their 
breast-work  and  partly  from  the  ditch  which  surrounded  the 
fort.  At  sunset  a  flag  was  sent  to  the  fort  demanding  its  sur- 
render. Considering.the  danger  of  his  situation.  Colonel  Wash- 
ington agreed  to  enter  upon  terms  of  capitulation,  in  order  to 
preserve  the  remainder  of  his  detachment,  which  had  bravely  de- 
fended themselves  for  nine  hours,  under  a  most  destructive  fire. 

The  loss  of  the  Americans  in  this  severe  engagement  was 
fifty-eight  killed  and  wounded,  besides  the  loss  of  two  inde- 
pendent companies,  increasing  their  entire  loss  to  seventy  kill- 
ed and  wounded.J 

Articles  of  capitulation  were  drawn  up  and  signed,  with  the 
following  stipulations,  viz. :  the  fort  was  to  be  surrendered 
upon  honorable  terms ;  the  troops  were  permitted  to  march 
out  with  their  arms  and  baggage,  and  to  retire  unmolested  to 
the  nearest  post  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  mountains,  upon  the 
express  condition  that  no  further  settlements  or  forts  should  be 
attempted  by  the  English  west  of  the  mountains  for  one  year. 
The  French  faithfully  observed  the  conditions,  and  Colonel 


*  Sparka's  Life  of  Waahington,  vol.  i.,  p.  53.       t  Martin's  Looiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  384. 
t  Manhall'a  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  ii.,  p.  11. 


176 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  II. 


Washington  marched  his  detachment  to  Fort  Cumberland,  on 
Will's  Creek,  near  the  present  town  of  Cumberland,  in  Mary- 
land. Thus  the  whole  Western  country  was  again  left  in  the 
possession  of  the  French  and  their  Indian  allies. 

In  all  the  first  collisions  between  the  French  and  English,  m 
the  contest  which  ensued,  the  former  were  uniformly  mild  and 
conciliating  in  their  resistance  to  British  aggression;  yet  they 
were  firm  in  maintaining  their  rightful  claim  to  the  country. 
The  encroachments  of  the  English  were  resisted,  at  first,  with 
courtesy  and  good  feeling.  The  Governor  of  Canada  had  re- 
monstrated with  the  governors  of  New  York  and  Pennsylva- 
nia against  their  claims  to  the  territory  south  of  Lake  Erie. 
He  protested  against  their  right  to  occupy  the  country,  and 
warned  them  against  encroachments,  and  declared  that,  were 
his  protestations  and  warnings  disregarded,  he  should  be  oblig- 
ed by  his  duty  to  seize  all  intruders  and  send  them  prisoners 
to  Canada.* 

As  an  evidence  of  the  kind  and  peaceable  feeling  entertain- 
ed by  the  French  in  the  beginning  of  their  struggle  for  the  great 
Ohio  region,  we  need  only  cite  the  facts  in  relation  to  the  cap- 
ture and  release  of  Lieutenant  Trent,  with  his  whole  detach- 
ment, who  were  permitted  to  retire,  with  all  their  arms,  equi- 
page, and  military  stores,  to  the  nearest  English  settlements ; 
or  the  capture  and  release  of  Colonel  Washington  and  his 
army,  after  the  slaughter  of  M.  Jumonville  and  his  party. 
These  facts  prove  unquestionably  that  they  were  reluctant  to 
shed  blood  in  the  contest. 

[A.D.  1755.]  During  the  winter,  General  Braddock  had 
arrived  in  the  Potomac,  with  a  large  regular  army  from  Eng- 
land, for  the  effectual  invasion  and  conquest  of  the  Ohio  coun- 
try. This  army  encamped  near  Alexandria  until  the  severity 
of  winter  should  cease,  and  a  body  of  provincial  troops  could 
be  organized  for  marching  orders.  In  the  mean  time,  the 
army  was  provided  with  every  thing  requisite  for  their  com- 
fort, and  for  the  complete  subjugation  of  the  territory  on  the 
upper  portion  of  the  Ohio  River.  Such  an  army  had  never 
been  seen  in  the  provinces.  As  soon  as  the  spring  had  suffi- 
ciently opened,  regardless  of  the  stipulations  in  the  surrender 
of  "  Fort  Necessity,"  General  Braddock  set  out  from  Alexan- 
dria, with  two  regiments  of  British  regulars  and  one  brigade 

*  Martin's  LoniBiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  319. 


i 
( 
c 

f 

t; 

I 

a 
n 

tl 


A.D.  1755.]  VALLEY   OF    THE    MI88ISSIPPL 


177 


ik  had 
n  Eng- 
)  coun- 
Bverity 
could 
e,  the 
r  com- 
on  the 
never 
d  suffi- 
render 
lexan- 
rigade 


of  Virginia  light  troops,  for  the  reduction  of  the  French  for- 
tress Duquesne. 

His  march  was  directed  to  Fort  Cumberland,  where  he  ar- 
rived with  the  army  about  the  middle  of  May.  Here  he  was 
joined  by  two  independent  companies  from  New  York,  and  the 
whole  force,  exclusive  of  provincials,  now  consisted  of  two  roy- 
al regiments  of  five  hundred  men  each,  one  of  which  was  com- 
manded by  Sir  Peter  Halket,  and  the  other  by  Colonel  Dunbar. 
Both  regiments  were  furnished  with  a  fine  train  of  artillery, 
and  abundant  military  stores  and  munitions.  The  provincial 
troops  consisted  of  about  one  thousand  effective  men,  furnished 
by  the  provinces  of  Virginia,  New  York,  and  Pennsylvania. 

Having  been  detained  at  Will's  Creek  about  three  weeks  for 
supplies  and  horses  for  transportation.  General  Braddock  set 
out  with  the  whole  army  upon  his  march  through  the  wilder- 
ness. The  army  was  divided  into  two  divisions :  the  first,  un- 
der the  commander  in  person,  consisted  of  twelve  hundred 
men,  as  the  advanced  division;  the  second,  commanded  by 
Colonel  Dunbar,  was  ordered  to  follow  by  slow  marches. 

After  nearly  four  weeks  of  slow  and  regular  marches  through 
the  wilderness,  the  advanced  division,  in  fine  health  and  spir- 
its, arrived,  on  the  8th  of  July,  at  the  junction  of  the  Yough- 
iogeny  and  Monongahela  Rivers.  The  officers  and  troops  ea- 
gerly pressed  forward,  in  the  belief  that  in  a  few  hours  more 
they  should  victoriously  enter  the  walls  of  Fort  Duquesne. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  July  the  army  had  reached  the 
last  crossing  of  the  Monongahela,  within  ten  miles  of  the  French 
fort.  Here  they  tarried  until  noon,  and  having  again  set  out 
after  their  repast,  they  had  just  crossed  the  river,  and  were 
slowly  advancing  in  marching  order  along  a  defile  near  the 
river,  thoughtless  of  danger,  when  the  advancing  column  was 
suddenly  arrested  by  a  furious  fire  of  musketry  and  small  arms 
on  all  sides  from  an  unseen  foe,  consisting  of  about  eight  hun- 
dred Frenchmen  and  Indians. 

The  whole  column  was  instantly  thrown  into  the  utmost  con- 
fusion and  consternation.  A  total  rout  and  defeat  ensued,  with 
the  loss  of  all  the  artillery,  camp  equipage,  stores,  and  papers. 
About  three  hundred  and  fifty  men  were  killed  on  the  ground, 
and  about  four  hundred  were  badly  wounded,  many  of  them 
mortally.  Besides  these,  twenty-six  officers  were  killed,  and 
thirty-seven  were  wounded.    Among  the  latter  was  General 

Vol.  I.— M 


178 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


Braddock  himself,  mortally  wounded,  who  died  a  few  days  af- 
terward at  Camp  Dunbar,  near  fifty  miles  in  the  rear. 

The  loss  sustained  by  the  forces  under  General  Braddock 
was  not  altogether  the  work  of  the  enemy.  The  panic  and 
consternation  of  the  British  troops  at  the  onset  were  indescrib- 
able. The  provincials,  who  were  accustomed  to  Indian  war- 
fare, immediately  sheltered  themselves,  after  the  Indian  fashion, 
behind  trees  and  other  objects,  from  which  they  kept  up  a  con- 
stant fire  upon  such  of  the  enemy  as  were  visible.  The  regu- 
lars, on  the  contrary,  formed  themselves  into  close  columns, 
which  were  continually  thinned  by  the  incessant  fire  of  the  in- 
visible foe.  At  length,  utterly  confounded  by  the  slaughter  and 
the  panic,  which  extended  to  the  officers,  they  collected  into 
squads,  and  fired  furiously  and  indiscriminately  at  every  point 
where  the  crack  of  a  rifle  or  the  smoke  of  a  gun  indicated  a 
combatant.  The  men  in  the  front  ranks  were  often  shot  down 
by  their  terror-stricken  companions  in  the  rear.  In  the  same 
way,  every  party  of  provincials  who  engaged  the  enemy  from 
their  coverts  drew  upon  themselves  the  fire  of  the  regulars,  as 
well  as  the  enemy  in  front.  Those  who  were  most  active  in 
resisting  the  enemy  were  almost  certain  to  perish  by  the  hands 
of  their  friends.  In  this  way.  Captain  Waggoner,  of  the  Vir- 
ginia troops,  who  had  taken  an  advanced  position  near  the  In- 
dians, with  eighty  men,  was  driven  from  his  position  by  the 
united  fire  of  the  Indians  and  British  regulars,  after  the  loss  of 
fifty  of  his  men. 

General  Braddock  himself,  in  all  probability,  was  killed  by 
one  of  the  indignant  provincials.  The  general  had  cut  down 
a  provincial,  for  disobeying  orders  in  sheltering  himself  from 
the  enemy's  fire.  The  brother,  who  witnessed  the  act,  deter- 
mined to  avenge  his  death,  and  awaited  the  first  opportunity, 
when  he  lodged  his  ball  in  the  body  of  his  overbearing  com- 
mander.* The  name  of  the  provincial  who  is  supposed  to  iiave 
fired  at  Braddock  was  Thomas  Fawcett.  Colonel  Washington 
himself  declared  that  many  of  the  brave  provincials  were  killed 
by  the  "  cowardly  British  regulars." 

The  whole  force  under  the  command  of  General  Braddock 
on  the  Monongahela,  including  the  provincial  militia  and  vol- 
unteers fi-om  Virginia,  Pennsylvania,  and  New  York,  was  about 
twenty-five  hundred  men,  of  whom  two  thousand  were  effective 

*  See  Gk>rdon's  History  of  Peniuylvania,  p.  303,  304.    Also,  Appendix,  p.  613. 


A.D.  1765.]  VALLEY   OP  THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


179 


troops.    Of  these,  one  thousand  belonged  to  the  royal  regi- 
ments, and  the  remainder  were  furnished  by  the  colonies. 

The  advanced  division,  which  sustained  the  attack  and  slaugh- 
ter in  this  memorable  defeat,  was  composed  of  at  least  twelve 
hundred  effective  men.  About  noon,  on  the  9th  day  of  July, 
this  division  crossed  the  Monongahela  in  fine  spirits,  confident 
of  an  easy  victory,  and  the  capture  of  Fort  Duquesne  within  a 
few  hours.  What  a  melancholy  doom  lay  behind  the  bright 
hopes  and  the  brilliant  pageant  of  that  day.* 

M.  de  ContreccEur,  commandant  of  Fort  Duquesne,  had  re- 
ceived early  and  continual  intelligence  of  Braddock's  arrival  in 
Virginia,  and  of  his  regular  advance.  West  of  Will's  Creek, 
the  French  and  Indian  scouts  were  constantly  abroad,  and  ob- 
served and  reported  every  movement  to  the  commandant,  who 
devised  his  measures  accordingly.  Feeling  himself  wholly  un- 
able, with  his  limited  resources,  to  offer  any  effectual  resistance 
to  such  a  formidable  foe,  he  despaired  of  making  a  regular  de- 
fense. At  this  time,  M.  de  Beaujeu,  a  captain  in  the  French 
service,  proposed  to  head  a  detachment  of  French  and  Indians, 
to  meet  the  advancing  force  and  to  harass  their  march.  He 
did  not  expect  to  draw  them  into  a  general  engagement,  but 
only  to  embarrass  and  retard  their  advance.  Yet  such  was 
the  apprehension  of  the  savages,  that  this  attempt  was  deemed 
hopeless  and  hazardous,  and  with  difHculty  the  Indians  were 
persuaded  to  engage  in  the  enterprise.  At  length,  seeing  him 
firm  in  his  determination,  they  consented  to  accompany  him,  and 
to  aid  in  forming  an  ambuscade,  but  little  dreaming  of  victory. 
The  ambuscade  had  scarcely  been  distributed,  when  the  ad- 
vancing column  was  seen  crossing  the  river,  within  a  few  hun- 
dred yards  of  the  defile  where  the  men  were  distributed.! 

The  disasters  of  the  Monongahela  put  an  end  to  the  military 
operations  of  Great  Britain  west  of  the  mountains  for  more 
than  two  years.  In  the  mean  time,  her  efforts  were  redoubled 
to  reduce  the  French  posts  near  the  great  lakes  and  on  the  St. 
Lawrence.  The  fate  of  war  began  to  crown  the  English  arms 
with  success,  and  by  the  close  of  the  year  1758,  France  had 
lost  all  her  strong-holds  on  the  lakes  and  south  of  them. 

While  France  was  victorious  upon  the  Ohio,  her  arms  were 
advancing  with  varied  success  from  the  St.  Lawrence  south- 

*  See  Sparks'*  Writings  of  Washington,  vol  ii.,  p.  468-470.    Abo,  vol  i.,  p.  66. 

*  See  Butler's  Kentucky,  2d  ed.,  p.  30. 


180 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[dOOK    II. 


ward  upon  Lake  Champlain.  In  the  spring  of  1765,  Sir  Will- 
iam Johnson  had  erected  "Fort  William  Henry"  upon  the 
southern  extremity  of  Lake  George,  named  in  honor  of  George 
III.  This  was  the  extreme  frontier  of  the  English  settlements 
in  this  quarter,  and  the  French  lost  no  opportunity  to  transfer 
the  war  to  the  east,  and  upon  the  shores  of  Lakes  Champlain 
and  George.  Fort  William  Henry  was  protected  by  a  garrison 
commanded  by  Colonel  Williams,  and  was  within  the  territory 
claimed  by  France.  The  Baron  Dieskau,  the  commander  of 
Eastern  Canada,  determined  to  reduce  the  fort  and  exclude  the 
English. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  at  the  head  of  eighteen  hundred 
Indians  and  Canadian  French,  he  advanced  to  the  attack,  but 
was  most  signally  defeated,  with  the  loss  of  many  of  his  brave 
men,  yielding  himself  a  martyr  to  the  cause.* 

[A.D.  1758.]  The  new  British  minister,  William  Pitt,  had 
taken  the  most  energetic  means  to  retrieve  the  honor  of  the 
British  arms.  A  numerous  and  well-disciplined  army  had  been 
dispatched  to  Virginia,  where  it  was  re-enforced  by  large  bodies 
of  provincial  troops  under  the  most  experienced  officers.  This 
army,  well  supplied  with  every  thing  requisite,  and  numbering 
about  seven  thousand  men,  began  to  advance  from  Carlisle,  in 
Pennsylvania,  toward  the  Monongahela.  The  French  com- 
mandant at  Fort  Duquesne,  being  duly  apprised  of  the  advance 
of  the  enemy,  and  finding  himself  without  assistance  or  re-en- 
forcement from  Canada,  deemed  it  folly  to  attempt  resistance 
with  his  feeble  force.  He  accordingly  retained  possession  of 
the  fort,  but  was  prepared  to  abandon  it  without  resistance 
whenever  the  British  army  should  begin  to  make  its  appear- 
ance. The  main  body  of  the  latter  was  within  one  day's  march 
of  the  confluence,  when  the  commandant,  with  his  troops,  ar- 
tillery, munitions,  and  stores,  embarked  in  boats  provided  for 
the  occasion ;  and  having  dismantled  the  works,  he  set  fire  to 
the  buildings  at  night,  and  departed  down  the  Ohio  in  a  blaze 
of  light,  to  join  the  French  troops  on  the  Mississippi. 

As  he  descended  the  Ohio,  he  stationed  a  detachment  of 
troops  under  M.  Massac,  at  a  commanding  eminence  on  the 
north  bank  of  the  river»  nearly  fifty  miles  above  its  mouth,  to 
erect  a  stockade,  which  was  called  Fort  Massac.f 


*  See  Western  Pioneer,  vol.  ii.,  p.  12, 13. 
t  Martin'a  Louisiana,  vol  i.,  p.  333. 


A.n.  1703.] 


VALLEY    or   TUB   MlSSISaiPPI. 


181 


[A.D.  1760.]  The  war  was  continued  upon  the  St.  Law- 
rence and  near  the  great  lakes  for  more  than  two  years  after- 
ward ;  when  .France,  having  lost  all  her  Canadian  territories, 
was  compelled  to  terminate  hostilities  by  a  treaty  which  de- 
prived her  of  all  her  continental  possessions  in  North  America. 

[A.D.  1763.]  By  the  treaty  of  Paris,  she  relinquished  in 
favor  of  Great  Britain  all  claim  to  Canada  and  New  France, 
embracing  all  the  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi  from  its 
source  to  the  Bayou  Iberville.  By  a  secret  treaty  made  pre- 
viously with  the  King  of  Spain,  the  French  king  had  ceded 
to  the  Spanish  crown  all  the  remainder  of  his  American  pos- 
sessions on  the  Mississippi,  embracing  all  Western  Louisiana 
and  the  Island  of  Orleans. 

Thus  ended  the  dominion  of  France  in  North  America,  and 
with  it  terminated  all  the  plans  for  extended  empire  on  the 
Mississippi.  Hard  as  seemed  their  lot,  the  French  population 
in  Louisiana  and  New  France  were  compelled  to  submit  to  the 
hated  power  of  England  ;  and  many  Canadians,  to  avoid  this 
alternative,  resolved  to  abandon  their  homes  and  relatives  in 
Canada,  and  seek  the  mild  paternal  rule  of  France  in  Western 
Louisiana. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  MANNERS  AND  CUSTOMS  OF  THE    EARLY   FRENCH    SETTLERS  IN 
THE    ILLINOIS    COUNTRY. A.D.  1700    TO    1780. 

Argument. — Extent  of  the  "  niinois  Country." — Conciliatory  Policy  of  the  French  to- 
ward the  Indian  Tribes. — Their  amicable  Intercourse  with  the  Natives. — Picture  of 
primitive  Happiness  enjoyed  by  the  Illinois  French. — Their  plain  and  homely  Houses 
and  rural  Villages. — "  Common  Field,"  and  Mode  and  Distribution  of  Labor. — Family 
Interests  in  the  same. — "  Commons,"  and  its  Uses. — Patriarchal  Harmony  and  Con- 
tentment of  these  Communities. — Moral  Influence  of  the  System. — Equality  and 
Happiuess  of  the  People. — The  Paternal  Homestead,  and  Patriarchal  Families. — 
Costume:  Male  and  Female. — Catholic  Religion. — Equality. — Contentment. — Sab- 
bath Amusements  and  Hilarity. — Trades  and  Professions. — Idiom. — Habits  and  De- 
portment.— Domestic  Simplicity  of  Manners  and  Virtues. — The  mild  and  indulgent 
Regime  of  Spain.— Facility  of  Incorporation  with  Indian  Character. — English  Au- 
thority introduced  in  1765. — The  Jurisdiction  of  the  United  States  extended  over  them 
in  1804. — Their  Objections  to  American  Population  and  Laws. 

[A.D.  1700-1740.]  For  many  years  the  term  "  Illinois 
country"  embraced  all  the  region  east  of  the  Upper  Mississippi 
as  far  as  Lake  Michigan,  and  from  the  Wisconsin  on  the  north 


182 


HIRTORY    or   TIIR 


[book  II 


to  the  Ohio  on  the  south.  The  extent  of  the  Illinois  country 
under  the  French  varied  but  little  from  the  extent  of  the  pres- 
ent State  of  Illinois.  At  n  Inter  date,  its  limits  on  the  east  were 
restricted  by  the  "  Wabash  country,"  which  was  erected  into 
a  separate  government,  under  the  commandant  of  "  Post  of  St. 
Vincent,"  on  the  Wabash  River. 

In  all  the  settlements  of  the  French  on  the  Illinois  and  Wa- 
bash Rivers,  as  well  as  in  Louisiana,  they  adopted  a  {H)licy  at 
once  singular  and  benevolent ;  a  policy  well  adapted  to  insure 
unity  ond  harmony  among  themselves,  and  to  secure  the  good 
will  and  friendship  of  the  numerous  tribes  in  the  Northwest  by 
which  they  were  surrounded.  They  seemed,  indeed,  constituted 
to  harmoniKe  in  all  their  habits  and  feelings  with  the  Indians 
among  whom  they  took  up  their  abode.  They  had  left  behind 
them,  among  the  colonists  near  the  Atlantic  border,  avarice,  that 
ruling  passion  of  European  emigrants  in  the  New  World,  which 
has  too  oflen  sought  its  gratification  in  plundering  the  natives 
of  their  little  patrimony  and  the  comforts  of  savage  life. 

Hence,  while  other  colonies  were  continually  embroiled 
with  the  natives  in  exterminating  wars,  the  Illinois  French, 
who  sought  peace  and  friendship,  lived  in  harmony  and  mutual 
confidence  with  the  surrounding  tribes. 

In  all  their  migrations  and  explorations  to  the  remotest  rivers 
and  hunting-grounds,  they  associated  with  the  Indians  "  like  a 
band  of  brothers,"  as  equally  the  children  of  the  same  great 
Father  of  all.  Free  from  that  selfish  feeling  which  prompts 
men  to  associate  in  separate  communities,  with  distinct  and 
discordant  interests,  each  endeavoring  to  monopolize  all  the 
advantages  of  time  and  circumstances,  they  lived  among  them- 
selves as  one  common  brotherhood,  and  yet  shared  with  the 
Indians  their  sufferings  and  their  hospitality.  Providence 
smiled  upon  the  happy  union  of  the  white  man  of  Europe  with 
the  red  man  of  the  American  wilderness. 

The  early  French  on  the  Illinois  were  remarkable  for  their 
talent  of  ingratiating  themselves  with  the  warlike  tribes  around 
them,  and  for  their  easy  amalgamation  in  manners,  and  cus- 
toms, and  blood.  Unlike  most  other  European  emigrants,  who 
commonly  preferred  to  settle  in  sparse  settlements,  remote  from 
each  other,  the  French  manifested  in  a  high  degree,  at  the  same 
time,  habits  both  social  and  vagrant.  They  settled  in  compact 
villages,  although  isolated,  in  the  midst  of  a  wilderness  a  thou- 


>t 


A.D.  1700-1740.]      VALLEY   Of  TUB    MWSIUBIPPI. 


188 


their 
Iround 
cus- 
},who 
from 
same 
ipact 
thou- 


sand milea  remote  from  the  dense  settlements  of  Canada.  On  the 
margin  uf  a  prairie,  or  on  the  hank  of  some  gentle  stream,  their 
viihiges  sprung  up  in  long,  narrow  streets,  with  each  family 
homestead  su  contiguous  that  the  merry  and  sociahle  villagers 
could  carry  on  their  v  oluble  conversation,  each  from  Iuh  own 
door  or  balcony.  The  young  men  and  voyageurs,  proud  of 
their  ini'^MPnce  among  the  remote  tribes  of  Indians,  delighted  in 
the  long  and  merry  voyages,  and  sought  adventures  in  the  dis- 
tant travels  of  the  fur-trade.  After  months  of  absence  uptm 
the  sources  of  the  longest  rivers  and  tributaries  among  their 
savage  friends,  they  returned  to  (heir  village  with  stores  of  furs 
and  peltries,  prepared  to  narrate  their  hardy  adventures  and 
the  thrilling  incidents  of  their  perilous  voyage.  Their  return 
was  greeted  with  smiling  faces,  and  signalized  by  balls  and 
dances,  at  which  the  whole  village  assembled,  to  see  the  great 
travelers,  and  hear  the  fertile  rehearsal  of  wonderful  adven- 
tures and  strange  sights  in  remote  countries.* 

Such  were  the  scenes  at  "  Old  Kaskaskia,"  at  Cahokia,  Prai- 
rie du  Ilocher,  and  a  few  other  points  on  the  Upper  Mississip- 
pi, from  the  year  1720  to  the  year  1765 ;  and,  in  later  times,  at 
the  villages  of  Fort  Chartres,  St.  Genevieve,  St.  Louis,  and  St. 
Charles ;  and  at  St.  Vincent  on  the  Wabash,  as  well  as  many 
other  points  on  the  Lower  Mississippi ;  at  the  Poet  of  Natchi- 
toches on  Red  River,  and  the  Post  of  Washita  on  the  Washita 
River ;  as  well  as  upon  the  La  Fourche,  Fausse  Riviere,  and 
the  coast  above  New  Orleans. 

Their  settlements  were  usually  in  the  form  of  small,  compact 
patriarchal  villages,  like  one  great  family  assembled  around 
their  old  men  and  patriarchs.  Their  houses  were  simple, 
plain,  and  uniform.  Each  homestead  was  surrounded  by  its 
own  separate  inclosure  of  a  rude  picket  fence,  adjoining  or 
contiguous  to  others  on  the  right  and  left.  The  houses  were 
generally  one  story  high,  surrounded  by  sheds,  or  galleries ; 
the  walls  were  constructed  of  a  rude  frame-work,  having  up- 
right corner-posts  and  studs,  connected  horizontally  by  means 
of  numerous  cross-ties,  not  unlike  the  rounds  in  a  ladder. 
These  served  to  hold  the  "  cat  and  clay"  with  which  the  inter- 
stices were  filled,  and  with  which  the  walls  were  made,  and 
rudely  plastered  with  the  hand.  ♦*  Cat  and  clay"  is  formed  by 
mud,  or  clay,  made  into  soft  mortar,  which  is  then  intimately 

*  See  Flint's  Oeography,  vol.  i.,  p.  161-2. 


184 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


blended  with  cut  strnw  or  Spanish  moss,  cut  fine,  instead  of 
hair.  The  chimney  was  made  of  similar  materials,  and  was 
formed  by  four  long  corner-posts,  converging  toward  the  top 
to  about  one  half,  or  less  than  the  space  below. 

These  abodes  of  happiness  were  generally  situated  on  !ie 
margin  of  a  beautiful  prairie,  and  beside  some  clear  stream  of 
running  water,  or  on  the  bank  of  a  river  or  bayou,  near  some 
rich,  alluvial  bottom,  which  supplied  the  grounds  for  the  "  com- 
mon field"  and  "  commons." 

The  "  common  field"  consisted  of  a  large  contiguous  inclos- 
ure,  reserved  for  the  common  use  of  the  village,  inclosed  by 
one  common  fence  for  the  benefit  of  all.  In  this  field,  which 
sometimes  consisted  of  several  hundred  acres,  each  vilKager 
and  head  of  a  family  had  assigned  to  him  a  certain  portion  of 
ground,  for  the  use  of  himself  and  family,  as  a  field  and  garden. 
The  extent  of  the  field  was  proportionate  to  the  number  of  per- 
sons or  families  in  the  village.  The  subdivisions  were  in  due 
proportion  to  the  number  of  members  in  each  family.  Each 
individual,  or  family,  labored  and  reaped  the  product  of  his 
own  allotment  for  his  own  use. 

If  the  inclosure  became  ruinous,  or  was  neglected  contigu- 
ous to  the  plat  of  any  family,  or  individual,  so  as  to  endanger 
the  general  interest,  that  individual,  or  family,  forfeited  their 
claim  to  the  use  of  the  common  field ;  and  their  interest  was 
assigned  to  another  person,  who  would  be  less  negligent. 

Each  individual,  or  head  of  a  family,  so  long  as  he  con- 
formed to  the  regulations  and  requisitions  of  the  village,  retain- 
ed his  interest  in  the  common  field  in  fee  simple,  transferable 
by  sale,  gift,  or  otherwise ;  liable,  however,  to  the  general  reg- 
ulations which  might  be  adopted  by  the  village. 

The  season  for  ploughing,  planting,  reaping,  and  other  agri- 
cultural operations  in  the  "  common  field,"  was  regulated  by 
special  enactments,  or  by  a  public  ordinance,  and  to  take  place 
simultaneously  in  each  village :  even  the  form  and  manner  of 
door-yards,  gardens,  and  stable-yards,  and  other  arrangements 
for  mutual  benefit,  and  the  convenience  of  all,  were  regulated 
by  special  enactment  of  the  little  village  senate.  These  were 
often  in  such  shape  and  connection  as  to  form  a  partial  protec- 
tion, like  a  picketed  camp,  against  any  hostile  irruption  of  In- 
dians, provided  such  event  might  ever  occur. 

Near  the  village,  and  around  the  common  field,  was  an  ex- 


A.D.   1700-1740.]     VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


185 


lY  agri- 

ted  by 

place 

Iner  of 

jments 

rulated 

were 

ji'otec- 

ofln- 

lan  ex- 


tensive open  scope  of  lands  reserved  for  "  commons,"  or  a  com- 
mon pasture-ground.  This  consisted  of  several  hundreds,  and 
often  of  thousands,  of  acres  uninclosed,  and  free  for  the  use  of 
all  as  a  common  pasture,  as  well  as  for  the  supply  of  fuel  and 
timber.  Yet  no  one  could  take  possession  of  any  portion  of  it, 
or  appropriate  it  to  his  own  individual  use,  without  the  general 
consent  of  the  villagers.  To  the  indigent,  however,  who  came 
to  settle  among  them,  and  to  newly-married  pairs,  appropria- 
tions were  often  made  from  portions  of  the  "  commons"  contig- 
uous to  the  common  field,  and  situated  so  that  it  might  subse- 
quently be  taken  into  it  by  extending  the  inclosure,  piovided 
the  individuals  proved  themselves  acceptable  members  of  their 
community. 

In  m.aking  grants  of  land  for  the  use  of  a  village  or  commu- 
nity, the  commandant  always  took  special  care  to  cause  a  res- 
ervation to  be  specially  designated  for  a  "  common  field"  and 
a  "  commons."  These  were  deemed  indispensable  requisites 
for  every  large  French  village.  The  same  custom  whs  ob- 
served by  the  Spanish  authorities  after  the  dominion  of  Spain 
was  extended  over  Louisiana. 

Nothing  was  better  calculated  to  improve  the  simple  and 
benevolent  feelings  of  unsophisticated  human  nature,  to  main- 
tain the  blessings  of  peace  and  harmony,  and  the  prevalence  of 
brotherly  love,  than  the  forms  of  life  and  the  domestic  usages 
which  prevailed  in  these  early  French  villages.  Under  this 
benign  influence,  peace  and  competence  smiled  upon  them; 
joy  and  mirth  beamed  from  every  countenance ;  contentment 
sat  on  every  brow.  The  natural  affluence  which  pervaded 
the  whole  village  was  common  to  all.  The  prolific  soil,  soli- 
cited by  gentle  labor  as  a  mere  matter  of  recreation,  yielded 
abundance  of  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  except  those  which 
were  derived  from  the  still  more  prolific  waters  and  the  chase. 
With  all  these  advantages,  and  all  these  easy  enjoyments,  in 
a  climate  of  great  benignity,  remote  from  the  strife  and  con- 
flicting interests  of  a  dense  population,  what  should  prevent 
them  from  esteeming  the  Illinois  a  "terrestrial  paradise,"  as 
La  Salle  had  termed  it  in  1682  ? 

How  enviable  the  condition  of  these  children  of  nature,  with 
but  little  more  care  and  anxiety  of  mind  than  is  experienced 
by  the  fowls  of  the  air,  compared  with  the  toil  and  anxiety  of 
refined  civilization ;  in  which  the  mind  is  continually  harassed 


186 


HISTOUY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


by  the  goadings  of  avarice,  and  by  the  incessant  efforts  to  ac- 
cumulate wealth  and  honors  on  the  one  hand,  or,  on  the  other, 
is  straitened  under  the  influence  of  penury  and  want,  by  a  con- 
stant harassing  anxiety  in  procuring  the  bare  necessaries  of 
life,  with  the  constant  apprehension  of  still  greater  want,  as  is 
often  seen  in  the  crowded  cities  of  Europe ! 

In  the  early  French  settlements  the  commons  abounded  with 
herds  of  domestic  animals — with  cattle,  horses,  sheep,  swine, 
and  others  tamed  from  the  forest,  which  wandered  at  large— 
and  was  used  as  a  general  store-house,  from  which  all  were 
freely  supplied;  while  corroding  care  was  banished  from 
hearts  as  light  as  those  of  the  beasts  that  roamed  the  fields. 

In  the  happy  enjoyment  of  such  a  life,  time  glides  rapidly  on ; 
and  to  age  death  came  a  hasty,  but  not  unwelcome  messenger, 
for  they  hoped  for  a  still  better  world  beyond  the  grave. 

Care  was  a  stranger  in  the  villages,  and  was  rarely  enter- 
tained many  days  as  a  guest.  Amusements,  festivals,  and  holy- 
days  were  frequent,  and  served  to  dispel  dull  care,  when  an 
unwelcome  visitor.  In  the  light  fantastic  dance,  the  young 
and  the  gay  were  active  participants,  while  the  serene  and  smil- 
ing countenance  of  the  aged  patriarch,  and  his  companion  in 
years,  and  even  of  the  "  reverend  father,"  lent  a  sanction  and 
a  blessing  upon  the  innocent  amusement  and  useful  recreation. 
The  amusements  past,  all  could  cheerfully  unite  in  offering  up 
to  God  the  simple  gratitude  of  the  heart  for  his  unbounded 
mercies. 

Fathers,  and  mothers,  and  grand-sires  enjoyed  no  higher 
pleasure  than  to  witness  the  innocent  mirth  of  their  children, 
and  their  aged  eyes  beamed  with  tranquil  delight  while  they 
beheld  the  happiness  of  the  young.  Religion  was  the  link 
which  united  the  joys  of  life  to  those  of  eternity ;  and  with 
hearts  doubly  devout,  the  young  and  the  old,  the  "  reverend  fa- 
ther" and  the  unlettered  child,  could  all  retire  from  a  scene  of 
innocent  mirth,  and  humbly  render  the  homage  of  their  hearts 
to  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the  universe. 

Nor  were  these  festive  enjoyments  confined  to  any  sex  or 
condition.  In  the  dance  all  participated,  from  the  youngest  to 
the  oldest,  the  bond  and  the  free ;  even  the  black  slave  was 
equally  interested  in  the  general  enjoyment,  and  was  happy 
because  he  saw  his  master  happy ;  and  the  master,  in  turn,  was 
oleased  to  witness  the  enjoyment  of  the  slave.    The  mutual  de- 


A.D.  1700-1740.]    VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


187 


sex  or 
igest  to 
re  was 
happy 
rn,  was 
lual  de- 


pendence of  each  upon  the  other,  in  their  respective  spheres, 
contributed  to  produce  a  state  of  mutual  harmony  and  attach- 
ment. It  has  been  almost  a  proverb,  that  the  world  did  not 
exhibit  an  example  of  a  more  contented  and  happy  race  than 
the  negro  slaves  of  the  early  French  in  the  Illinois  country.* 
The  numerous  festivals  of  the  Catholic  Church  tended  strongly 
to  foster  the  mutual  interchange  of  friendly  feelings  among 
those  who  were  thus  removed  beyond  the  reach  and  influence 
of  wealth  and  power. 

In  religion  all  were  Catholics,  and  revered  the  pope  as  the 
great  head  of  the  Church,  who  held  the  keys  of  heaven  and  of 
purgatory,  and  dispensed  his  favors  or  his  frowns  through  the 
priests,  who  were  their  friends  and  counselors,  and  whom  they 
esteemed  as  "  reverend  fathers."  They  knew  no  difference  of 
sects,  nor 

"  Doctrines  framed  to  salt  the  varying  hour." 

Ardently  attached  to  their  spiritual  guides,  religion  became 
one  of  the  great  rules  of  social  life.  They  observed  strictly  all 
the  outward  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  Romish  Church,  and 
their  lives  corresponded  with  their  professions.  Ignorant  of 
creeds,  except  the  "  Apostles'  Creed,"  they  were  not  skillful  dis- 
putants ;  but  holydays  and  festivals  were  never  forgotten  or 
neglected.  Gratitude  to  God,  the  religion  of  the  heart,  and 
love  to  mankind,  is  found  more  often  in  the  rude  stages  of  civ- 
ilized life  than  in  the  blandishments  of  wealth,  and  among  the 
accumulated  temptations  of  refinement  and  intelligence. 

As  has  been  observed  by  Major  Stoddart,  who  was  lieuten-  ^ 
ant-governor  of  Upper  Louisiana  in  1804,  "Perhaps  the  levi- 
ties displayed,  and  the  amusements  pursued  by  the  French  peo- 
ple on  Sundays,  may  be  considered  by  some  to  border  upon 
licentiousness.  They  attend  mass  in  the  morning  with  great 
devotion ;  but  after  the  exercises  of  church  are  over,  they  usu- 
ally collect  in  parties  and  pass  away  their  time  in  social  and 
merry  intercourse.  They  play  at  billiards  and  other  games, 
and  to  balls  and  assemblies  the  Sundays  are  particularly  de- 
voted. To  those  educated  in  regular  and  pious  Protestant  hab- 
its such  parties  and  amusements  appear  unseasonable,  strange, 
and  odious,  if  not  prophetic  of  some  signal  .curse  on  the  work- 

*  See  "  The  Far  West."  This  is  a  very  interesting  little  work,  in  two  volumes,  12mo, 
by  an  anonymous  author.  It  was  published  in  1837  or  1838.  It  contains  some  fine 
sketches  of  the  Western  country,  of  Western  manners  and  customs,  and  many  graphic 
descriptions  of  the  natural  beauties  of  the  West,  chiefly  on  the  region  of  the  Upper 
Mississippi, 


188 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[nooK  II. 


ers  of  iniquity.  It  must,  however,  be  confessed  that  the  French 
people,  on  those  days,  avoid  all  intemperate  and  immoral  ex- 
cesses, and  conduct  themselves  with  apparent  decorum.  They 
are  of  opinion  that  there  is  true  and  undefiled  religion  in  their 
amusements,  much  more,  indeed,  than  they  can  see  in  certain 
night  conferences  and  obscure  meetings  in  various  parts  among 
the  tombs. 

"  When  questioned  relative  to  their  gayety  on  Sundays,  they 
will  answer,  that  men  were  made  for  happiness,  and  that  the 
more  they  are  able  to  enjoy  themselves,  the  more  acceptable 
they  are  to  their  Creator.  They  are  of  opinion  that  a  sullen 
countenance,  attention  to  gloomy  subjects,  a  set  form  of  speech, 
and  a  stiff  behavior,  are  more  indicative  of  hypocrisy  than  of 
religion ;  and  they  say  they  have  often  remarked  that  those 
who  practice  these  singularities  on  Sunday  will  most  assured- 
ly cheat  and  defraud  their  neighbors  during  the  remainder  of 
the  week. 

"  Such  are  the  religious  sentiments  of  a  people  void  of  su- 
perstition ;  of  a  people  prone  to  hospitality,  urbanity  of  man- 
ners, and  innocent  recreation,  and  who  present  their  daily  ori- 
sons at  the  throne  of  Grace  with  as  much  confidence  of  success 
as  the  most  devout  Puritan  in  Christendom."* 

The  costume  of  the  early  French  was  plain,  simple,  and 
unique,  differing  but  little  from  that  of  the  Creole  and  Acadian 
French  of  Louisiana  at  the  present  time,  as  seen  upon  the  La- 
fourche, the  Teche,  and  in  the  Acadian  settlements  of  Oppe- 
lousas  and  Attakapas. 

The  winter  dress  of  the  men  was  generally  a  coarse  blank- 
et capote,  drawn  over  their  shirt  and  long  vest.  The  capote 
served  the  double  purpose  of  cloak  and  hat ;  for  the  hood,  at- 
tached to  the  collar  behind,  hung  upon  the  back  and  shoulders 
as  a  cape,  and,  when  desired,  it  served  to  cover  the  whole  head 
from  intense  cold.  Most  commonly,  in  summer,  and  especially 
among  the  boatmen,  voyageurs,  and  courriers  du  bois,  the  head 
was  enveloped  in  a  blue  handkerchief,  turban-like,  as  a  protec- 
tion from  solar  heat  and  noxious  insects.  The  same  material, 
of  lighter  quality,  and  fancy  colors,  wreathed  with  bright-col- 
ored ribbons,  and  sometimes  flowers,  formed  the  fancy  head- 
dress of  the  females  on  festive  occasions :  at  other  times  they 
also  used  the  handkerchief  in  the  more  patriarchal  style. 

*  See  Stoddart's  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  316,  317. 


A.D.  1700-1740.]  VALLEY   OP   THE   MissisaiPri. 


189 


The  dress  of  the  matrons  was  simple  and  plain ;  the  old  fash- 
ioned short  jacket  and  petticoat,  varied  to  suit  the  diversities 
of  taste,  was  the  most  common  over-dress  of  the  women.  The 
feet  in  winter  were  protected  by  Indian  moccasins,  or  the  more 
unwieldy  clog-shoe ;  but  in  summer,  and  in  dry  weather,  the 
foot  was  left  uncovered  and  free,  except  on  festive  occasions 
and  holydays,  when  it  was  adorned  with  the  light  moccasin, 
gorgeously  ornamented  with  brilliants  of  porcupine  quills,  shells, 
beads,  or  lace,  ingeniously  wrought  over  the  front  instead  of 
buckles,  and  on  the  side  flaps. 

The  idiom  of  these  villagers,  especially  in  those  of  the  Illi- 
nois country  and  Upper  Louisiana,  was  in  many  points  differ- 
ent from  that  of  the  European  French,  both  in  the  pronuncia- 
tion and  in  the  signification  of  words.  In  general  terms,  the 
Illinois  idiom  seemed  destitute  of  that  nervous  and  animated 
brilliancy  of  expression  peculiar  to  the  Parisian  French.  In 
the  Creole  French  of  Louisiana,  at  this  time,  there  is  percepti- 
ble a  slow,  drawling,  or  nasal  sound  of  many  words,  which 
gives  to  conversation  a  languid  air,  not  often  seen  in  Europe. 
Yet  the  Creole  French  tongue  is  more  pure  than  might  have 
been  expected,  after  a  protracted  separation  of  nearly  a  centu- 
ry from  the  parent  country,  and  much  of  the  time  under  a  for- 
eign dominion,  with  the  introduction  of  a  foreign  language 
among  them.* 

Under  the  French  dominion,  the  government  was  mild  and 
paternal ;  a  mixture  of  civil  and  military  rule,  without  the  tech- 
nicalities of  the  one  or  the  severity  of  the  other.  The  com- 
mandant was  invested  with  despotic  authority ;  yet  he  rarely 
exercised  his  power  otherwise  than  in  a  kind  and  paternal  man- 
ner, and  for  the  general  welfare  of  his  people.  In  return,  he 
received  not  only  their  obedience  and  respect,  but  also  their 
love. 

The  peculiar  manners  and  customs  of  these  French  settle- 
ments at  first,  and  for  an  age  afterward,  isolated,  and  a  thou- 
sand miles  from  any  other  civilized  community,  became  char- 
acteristic and  hereditary  with  their  descendants,  even  to  the 
present  time.  From  their  first  settlement  on  the  Illinois  and 
at  Kaskaskia,  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  they  have  uni- 
formly enjoyed  the  confidence  and  friendship  of  the  Indian 
tribes.     From  long  intercourse,  and  by  assimilating  themselves 

•  See  "  The  Far  West." 


"ii-' 


190 


HISTORY   OF   THB 


[book  II. 


in  a  great  measure  to  the  habits  and  customs  of  the  native 
tribes,  and  by  their  peaceable  and  conciliatory  characters,  they 
had  become  almost  identified  as  brothers.  While  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  race  was  establishing  colonies  along  the  Atlantic  coast, 
from  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  to  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth,  ever  restless  and  discontented,  were  struggling  with 
the  savage  occupants  for  the  sterile  and  sandy  shores  of  Vir- 
ginia and  New  England,  and  the  rocky  barriers  of  the  interior, 
the  French,  far  removed  from  civilization,  in  the  very  heart  of 
the  continent,  and  surrounded  by  every  thing  in  nature  which 
could  fascinate  the  eye  or  delight  the  fancy,  in  peace  and  friend- 
ship with  the  tribes,  lived  contented,  happy,  and  prosperous, 
in  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  "  terrestrial  paradise  of  America."* 

In  the  appearance  of  the  "  patriarchal  homestead,"  among  the 
country  settlements,  there  was  something  peculiarly  interesting, 
which  reminds  us  strongly  of  a  primitive  simplicity  but  rarely 
seen  in  the  present  day.  The  patriarchal  homestead  of  de- 
tached settlements  stands  in  the  middle  of  a  spacious  inclosure, 
used  as  a  common  yard  for  several  generations.  This  inclos- 
ure may  contain  one  or  two  acres,  and  sometimes  less  ;  it  is 
the  residence  of  the  oldest  member  of  the  family,  who  possibly 
has  occupied  it  for  more  than  half  a  century.  Each  child  or 
grand-child,  who,  having  arrived  at  the  years  of  maturity, 
and  become  the  head  of  a  family,  may  be  found  settled  in  a 
small  thatched  or  mud  cottage  at  one  side  of  the  paternal  in- 
closure, rears  up  a  flourishing  young  family,  which,  with  their 
increase,  are  branches  of  the  original  family,  having  a  com- 
munity of  interest  and  feeling.  At  length,  the  aged  patriarch 
becomes  surrounded  by  a  dozen  growing  families  of  his  own 
lineage,  until  the  third  and  fourth  generations  will  be  found  liv- 
ing in  perfect  harmony,  each  family  occupying  its  own  cottage 
around  the  patriarchal  roof.  Scenes  of  this  kind  are  yet  seen 
upon  the  French  coast  above  and  below  New  Orleans,  upon  the 
Lafourche,  the  Teche,  and  other  French  settlements  of  Louisi- 
ana, in  the  region  of  Oppelousas  and  Attakapas. 

As  their  lands  were  generally  held  in  common,  and  vacant 
lands  were  free  to  all,  the  relation  of  landlord  and  tenant  was 
unknown ;  vested  rights  of  chartered  companies  were  equally 
unknown,  and  no  inflated  and  unfeeling  '^nstocracy  Icrded  it 
over  the  humble  poor,  reduced  to  a  dep  'r>dftiit  and  servile  peas- 

»  See  "  The  Tar  West,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  155. 


n 


OK   II. 


A.D.  1700-1740.]   VALLEY    OP    THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


191 


native 
I,  they 
<.nglo- 
coast, 
of  the 
g  with 
•f  Vir- 
iterior, 
eart  of 
which 
friend- 
perous, 
irica."* 
ong  the 
resting, 
t  rarely 
i  of  de- 
closure, 
i  inclos- 
es ;  it  is 
possibly 
child  or 
maturity, 
ed  in  a 
rnal  in- 
th  their 
a  com- 
atriarch 
lis  own 
)und  liv- 
cottage 
yet  seen 
upon  the 
Louisi- 

1  vacant 
lant  was 
equally 
;vded  it 
ile  peas- 


, 


antry.  The  wealth  of  all  consisted  in  their  good  name,  and  ir 
their  unrestrained  freedom  to  enjoy  the  bounties  of  nature. 
Some  possessed  more  personal  property  than  others ;  but 
wealth  gave  no  exclusive  privileges.  Superiority  depended 
alone  upon  superior  merit. 

The  common  people,  in  their  ordinary  deportment,  were  often 
characterized  by  a  calm,  thoughtful  gravity,  and  the  saturnine 
severity  of  the  Spaniard,  rather  than  the  levity  characteristic 
of  the  French ;  yet,  in  their  amusements  and  fetes,  they  ex- 
hibited all  the  gayety  of  the  natives  of  France.  Their  satur- 
nine gravity  was  probably  a  habit,  adopted  from  the  Indian 
tribes  with  whom  they  daily  held  intercourse,  and  in  whose 
sense  of  propriety  levity  of  deportment  on  ordinary  occasions 
is  esteemed  not  only  unbecoming,  but  unmanly.  The  calm, 
quiet  tenor  of  their  lives,  remote  from  the  active  bustle  of  civ- 
ilized life  and  business,  imparted  to  their  character,  to  their 
feelings,  to  their  general  manners,  and  even  to  their  very  lan- 
guage, a  languid  softness  which  contrasted  strongly  with  the 
anxious  and  restless  activity  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  which 
is  fast  succeeding  to  the  occupancy  of  their  happy  abodes. 
With  them  hospitality  was  hardly  esteemed  a  virtue,  because 
it  was  a  duty  which  all  cheerfully  performed.  Taverns  were 
unknown,  and  every  house  supplied  the  deficiency.  The  stat- 
ute-book, the  judiciary,  and  courts  of  law,  with  their  prisons 
and  instruments  of  punishment,  were  unknown  ;  as  were  also 
the  crimes  for  which  they  arie  erected  among  the  civilized  na- 
tions of  Europe.  Learning  and  science  were  terms  beyond 
their  comprehension,  and  their  technicalities  were  unheard. 
Schools  were  few,  and  learned  men  were  rare  ;  the  priest  was 
their  oracle  in  matters  of  learning,  as  well  as  in  the  forms  and 
observances  of  religion.  The  village  school  was  the  great 
source  and  fountain  of  book-knowledge,  and  there  the  rising 
generation  might  acquire  all  the  elements  of  a  complete  edu- 
cation for  a  French  villager. 

On  politics  and  the  affairs  of  the  nation  they  never  suffered 
their  minds  to  feel  a  moment's  anxiety,  believing  implicitly 
that  France  ruled  the  world,  and  all  must  be  right.  Worldly 
honors  and  distinctions  were  bubbles  unworthy  a  moment's 
consideration  or  a  moment's  anxiety.  Without  commerce,  they 
knew  not,  nor  desired  to  know,  the  luxuries  and  the  refine- 
ments of  civilized  communities.     Thus  day  after  day  passed 


193 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


by  in  contentment  and  peaceful  indolence.  The  distinction  of 
wealth  or  rank  was  almost  unknown ;  all  were  upon  a  natural 
equality,  all  dressed  alike,  and  all  met  as  equals  at  their  fetes 
and  in  their  ball-rooms. 

The  virtues  of  their  primitive  simplicity  were  many.  Punc- 
tuality and  honesty  in  their  dealings,  politeness  and  hospitality 
to  strangers,  were  habitual ;  friendship  and  cordiality  toward 
neighbors  was  general ;  and  all  seemed  as  members  of  one 
great  family,  connected  by  the  strong  ties  of  consanguinity. 
Wives  were  kind  and  affectionate ;  in  all  respects,  they  were 
equal  to  their  husbands,  and  held  an  influence  superior  to  the 
females  in  most  civilized  countries.  They  had  entire  control  in 
all  domestic  concerns,  and  were  the  chief  and  supreme  umpires 
in  all  doubtful  cases.  Did  a  case  of  casuistry  arise,  who  so 
well  able  to  divine  the  truth,  or  so  well  qualified  to  enforce 
the  decision,  as  the  better  half? 

Among  the  villages,  we  have  said,  there  were  few  distinc- 
tions ;  the  more  enterprising  became,  of  course,  more  wealthy, 
by  trade  and  traffic  with  the  Indians,  in  the  purchase  and  sale 
of  furs,  peltries,  and  other  commodities  supplied  by  the  native 
tribes. 

The  "  traders"  kept  a  heterogeneous  stock  of  goods  in  their 
largest  room,  where  their  assortment  was  fully  displayed  to 
the  gaze  of  the  purchasers.  The  young  men  of  enterprise, 
wishing  to  see  the  world,  sought  occupation  and  gratification 
as  voyageurs  or  boatmen,  as  agents  for  the  traders,  or  as  hunt- 
ers, to  visit  the  remote  tribes  upon  the  furthest  sources  of  the 
Mississippi  and  the  Missouri,  in  company  with  the  trading  ex- 
peditions which  annually  set  out  from  the  Illinois  country. 

Mechanic  trades,  as  a  mears  of  livelihood,  were  almost  un- 
known ;  the  great  business  of  all  was  agriculture,  and  the  care 
of  their  herds  and  flocks,  their  cattle,  their  horses,  their  sheep, 
and  their  swine,  and  each  man  was  his  own  mechanic* 

Thus  lived  the  French  in  New  France  and  Louisiana,  until  af- 
ter the  Canadian  provinces  had  been  wrested  from  the  Fre^ich 
crown  by  the  arms  of  England,  and  the  English  power  was 
extended  over  the  Illinois  in  1765.  But  a  change  came  over 
their  peaceful  abodes.  Should  Frenchmen  submit  to  the  hated 
dominion  of  England,  their  most  inveterate  national  enemy? 
Many  preferred  to  leave  their  homes  and  their  fields,  and  to 

*  See  "  The  Far  West,"  voL  i.,  p.  163. 


A.D.   1700-1740.]       VALLEY    OF    THE    MlSSISSIPri. 


103 


seek  new  abodes  under  the  dominion  of  France,  which  still 
prevailed  west  of  the  Mississippi.  The  French  settlements 
of  the  Illinois  then  began  to  decline  ;  and,  to  prevent  their  en- 
tire abandonment,  the  English  governor,  instructed  by  his  gov- 
ernment, gave  assurances  that  their  religion  should  be  pro- 
tected, and  their  rights  and  property  remain  inviolate  under 
the  dominion  of  Great  Britain.  Many  consented  to  remain ; 
but  many  retired  to  Western  Louisiana.  Then  it  was  that  the 
French  settlements  began  to  extend  upon  the  west  side  of  the 
Mississippi,  within  the  present  limits  of  the  State  of  Missouri. 

But  their  peace  was  soon  interrupted  here.  Rumor  soon 
proclaimed  that  all  Western  and  Southern  Louisiana  had  been 
ceded  to  Spain.  The  rumor  was  too  true ;  for  already  they 
were  subjects  of  the  Spanish  king.  Although  the  Spanish  au- 
thority was  not  formally  extended  over  them  for  five  years, 
yet  these  five  years  were  years  of  trouble,  suspense,  and  dis- 
appointment. 

The  government  of  Spain,  like  that  of  France,  was  mild  and 
paternal ;  nor  did  the  Spanish  authorities  care  to  interfere  with 
the  established  usages  and  customs  of  the  French  population, 
but  extended  every  indulgence  which  could  be  desired  from  a 
kind  and  lenient  government.  A  few  years  served  to  dispel 
all  dissatisfaction  at  the  change  of  rulers,  and  the  French  vil- 
lagers and  voyageurs,  for  thirty  years  more,  continued  to  en- 
joy their  "  terrestrial  paradise,"  under  their  ancient  forms  of 
government  and  the  Catholic  religion,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Mississippi. 

Nor  was  their  peace  again  disturbed  until  the  Anglo-Amer- 
icans from  the  United  States  began  to  approach  the  Mississippi 
in  the  regions  of  the  Illinois  and  Old  Kaskaskia.  This  ap- 
proach, however,  was  only  the  precursor  of  a  new  era,  with 
themselves,  in  Upper  Louisiana,  and  of  a  total  change  in  their 
happy  and  retired  mode  of  life.  A  few  years  brought  the  un- 
welcome news  that  all  Louisiana  had  been  ceded  to  the  United 
States,  and  that  soon  a  new  system  of  jurisdiction  was  to  be 
extended  over  them. 

Previous  to  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to  the  United  States  in 
1803,  the  French  had  become  assimilated  in  feelings  with  their 
Spanish  rulers,  who  wisely  combined  the  laws  of  Spain  and 
France.  "  The  laws  of  Spain  were  introduced  only  so  far  as 
related,  generally,  to  municipal  arrangement  and  real  estate; 

Vol.  I.— N 


104 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


while  the  common  law  of  France  governed  all  contracts  of  a 
social  nature,  modified  by,  and  interwoven  with,  the  customs 
of  the  people.'  Each  district  had  its  commandant,  and  each 
village  its  syndic ;  besides  judges  in  civil  aflfairs  for  the  prov- 
ince and  officers  of  the  militia,  a  small  body  of  which  was  sta- 
tioned in  every  district,  though  too  inconsiderable  to  afford 
much  protection  to  the  inhabitants.  These  rulers  were  ap- 
pointed by  the  governor  at  New  Orleans,  to  whom  there  was 
the  right  of  an  appeal.  The  lieutenant-governor,  who  resided 
at  St.  Louis,  was  commander  of  the  troops.  Thus  the  govern- 
ment was  a  mixture  of  civil  and  military ;  and  though  arbitra- 
ry to  the  last  degree,  yet  we  are  told  the  rod  of  domination 
was  so  light  as  scarcely  to  be  felt. 

•*  However  this  may  be,  it  is  certain  they  did  not  well  rel- 
ish, at  first,  the  change  in  the  administration  of  justice  when 
they  came  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States.  The 
delays  and  the  uncertainty  attendant  on  trial  by  jury,  and  the 
multifarious  technicalities  of  our  jurisprudence,  they  could  not 
well  comprehend,  either  as  to  its  import  or  utility ;  and  it  is  not 
strange  that  they  should  have  preferred  the  more  prompt  and 
less  expensive  decisions  of  the  Spanish  tribunals."* 

*  Stoddart's  Louisiana. 


A.D.  1682.] 


VALLEY    OK    THE    Ml-       t^lPPi 


105 


TUB 


CHAPTER  V. 

FIRST    COLONIZATION     OP    LOUISIANA     I^NTIL   THE    CLOSE    OP 
CROZAt's    monopoly. A.D.   1698    TO    1717. 


Argument. — Retrospect  of  the  Illinois  Settlements. — D'lbervillo  undertakes  to  Colo- 
nize Lower  Louisiana. — Sails  with  his  Colony  from  Ilochelle,  Sei»tembcr  '-Mth,  17U8.— 
Leaves  the  West  Indies,  and  reaches  Flori<ia  hi  January,  !(!!)!). — Casts  anchor  at 
Isle  Dauiihiii. — Disembarks  his  Colony  on  Ship  Island. — Sets  out  to  explore  tho 
Mouth  of  tho  Mississippi. — p^^ntcrs  that  lliveron  tho  2d  of  March. — Finds  Letter  of 
Do  Tonti  to  La  Salle,  dateil  1G85. — lleturns  by  way  of  the  Bayou  Iberville  to  Bay  of 
St.  Louis. — Builds  Fort  Biloxi,  May  2d. — Sails  for  France. — English  Attempts  to 
pro-occupy  Louisiana. — Tlio  British  Kins  bribes  Hennepin  to  lie. — British  Colony 
arrives  in  the  Mississippi. — Condition  of  the  Colony  at  Biloxi. — Bienville  superin- 
tends tho  Colony  as  Governor. — Explores  tho  Channel  of  the  Mississippi. — Ibervillo 
returns  with  another  Colony. — Builds  a  Fort  on  tho  Bank  of  tho  River. — Ascends 
the  River  as  far  as  tho  Natchez  Tribe. — Selects  a  Site  for  Fort  Rosalie. — The  Natch- 
ez ludians. — Their  Customs  and  Religious  Ceremonies. — Interview  with  the  "Great 
Sun." — Boundary  between  Louisiana  and  Florida  compromised. — The  Colony  at  Bi- 
loxi reduced  by  Sickness  and  Death. — Exploring  Parties. — Unrivaled  Water  Com- 
munications.— Death  of  Sauvolle,  Commandant. — Iberville  retires  to  France. — His 
Death  in  1706. — Extravagant  Mining  Credulity  continues. — Explorations  for  Mines. — 
Feeble  Condition  of  the  Colony  from  1704  to  1710. — Louisiana  made  Independent 
of  Canada. — Bienville  Governor- general. — Bonks  of  the  Mississippi  neglected. — Cro- 
zat's  Monopoly  granted,  171*2. — Extent  of  Louisiana  defined  in  his  Grant. — Popula- 
tion of  the  Colony  in  1713. — Crozat's  Enterprise,  Zeal,  and  Plans  of  Trade. — Ho  is 
excluded  from  Trade  with  Florida  and  Mexico. — Settlements  extend. — Natchitoches 
on  Red  River  settled. — Trading-posts  established. — Disappointment  and  Failure  of 
his  Plans. — Expenditures  of  Crozat  up  to  1716.— Fort  Rosalie  built  in  1716. — Tho 
new  Governor,  L'Epinai,  arrives  with  Troops. — Crozat  surrenders  his  Charter  in 
1717. — Condition  of  the  Colony  athia  Surrender. 

We  have  already  seen  that,  from  the  exploration  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi by  La  Salle,  in  1682,  emigrants,  voyageurs,  and  traders 
from  Canada  continued  to  visit  and  occupy  portions  of  the  Il- 
linois region,  as  well  as  a  few  points  on  the  Upper  Mississippi. 
Many  of  those  who  had  first  accompanied  La  Salle  in  his  per- 
ilous advance  south  and  west  of  Lake  Michigan  became  per- 
manent settlers,  attached  to  the  mild  climate  and  the  prolific  soil. 
Thus  small  French  settlements  began  to  be  made  in  the  vicin- 
ity of  La  Salle's  trading-posts  more  than  a  thousand  miles  in 
advance  of  the  settlements  of  Canada,  where  the  unambitious 
white  man  dwelt  in  peace  with  the  red  man  of  the  wilderness. 
Other  restless  spirits  and  hardy  adventurers  from  Canada 
longed  to  see  the  region  which  had  been  described  by  La  Sal- 
le and  others  as  the  most  delightful  country  on  earth.     The 


196 


HIriTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


veteran  Chevniier  de  Tonti  lm<l  remained  in  command  on  the 
Illinois  while  La  Salle  was  in  France  organizing  his  colony 
for  Lower  Louisiana  ;  and  in  1085,  having  heani  of  his  arrival 
with  his  colony  in  the  West  Indies,  he  had  descended  the  river 
with  n  party  of  Canadians  and  Indians  to  greet  him  and  his  col- 
ony at  the  mouth  ojthe  Mississippi.  Finding  no  vestige  of  his 
colony,  and  unable  to  obtain  any  certain  intelligence  of  his 
fate,  he  returned  to  the  Illinois,  where  he  remained  at  the  head 
of  affairs  until  the  year  1700,  when  he  descended  the  river 
again  with  twenty  Canadians  to  greet  the  new  colony  of  Iber- 
ville.* Occasionally,  before  this  time,  the  traders  and  voya- 
geurs,as  well  as  the  Jesuit  missionaries,  had  descended  the  river 
from  the  Illinois  country  to  the  Chickasa  and  Natchez  In- 
dians ;  but  after  the  arrival  of  Iberville's  colony,  these  adven- 
turous voyages  were  more  frequent. 

[A.D.  1098.]  The  court  of  France  had  been  engaged  m 
wars  and  political  intrigues,  and  nothing  toward  colonizing 
Louisiana  had  been  effected  since  the  disastrous  expedition  of 
La  Salle.  Twelve  years  had  elapsed,  but  his  discoveries  and 
his  unfortunate  fate  had  not  been  forgotten.  At  length,  in 
1098,  an  expedition  for  colonizing  the  region  of  the  Lower  Mis- 
sissippi was  set  on  foot  by  the  French  king.  It  was  placed  un- 
der the  command  of  M.  d'Iberville,  who  had  been  an  experi- 
enced and  distinguished  naval  commander  in  the  French  wars 
of  Canada,  and  a  successful  agent  in  establishing  colonies  in 
Canada,  Acadie,  and  Cape  Breton.  D'Iberville  was  a  man 
well  qualified  for  the  undertaking ;  his  judgment  was  mature, 
his  manner  stern,  and  his  decision  and  action  prompt  in  the 
execution  of  his  plans. 

He  was  willing,  after  encountering  the  snows  and  icebergs 
of  Hudson's  Bay  and  St.  Lawrence,  to  transfer  the  theatre  of 
his  operations  to  the  burning  sands  of  Florida.  Desirous  of 
distinction  also  in  the  South,  and  willing  to  serve  his  country 
in  any  sphere,  he  accepted  the  trust  of  colonizing  the  Lower 
Mississippi.  The  Spaniards  had  already  formed  a  settlement 
and  taken  formal  possession  of  the  coast  of  West  Florida,  and 
Pensacola  had  become  a  fortified  town,  with  a  colony  of  three 
hundred  Spaniards  from  Vera  Cruz. 

In  the  summer  of  1798,  D'Iberville  entered  upon  the  com- 
mand of  the  enterprise  of  colonizing  Louisiana.     With  his  little 

*  Bancroft,  vol  iil,  p,  195. 


30K  II. 

Dii  the 
I'olony 
Luriviil 
B  river 
Ills  <5ol- 
Q  of  his 
of  his 
le  head 
e  river 
jf  Iber- 
d  voya- 
lie  river 
;hez  In- 
i  adven- 

jaged  in 
(Ionizing 
lition  of 
iries  and 
jngth,  in 
^er  Mis- 
aced  un- 

experi- 
ich  wars 

onies  in 
a  man 

mature, 

»t  in  the 

icebergs 
eatre  of 
irons  of 
country 
}  Lower 
ttlement 
ida,  and 
of  three 

Ihe  com- 
IhisUttle 


A.D.   1600.]  VALLEY    OF   TUB    MISHIMIPPI.  107 

fleet  of  two  frigates,  rating  thirty  guns  each,  and  two  smaller 
vessels,  hearing  a  company  of  marines  and  two  humhed  colo- 
nists, in«!luding  a  few  women  and  children,  he  prepared  to  set 
sail  from  France  for  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  The  col- 
onists were  mostly  soldiers  who  had  served  in  the  armies  of 
France,  aiul  had  received  an  honorable  discharge.  They  were 
well  supplied  with  provisions  and  im])lement8  retpiisite  for 
opening  settlements  in  the  wilderness. 

It  was  on  the  24th  day  of  September,  1708,  that  this  col- 
ony sailed  from  Rochelie.*  A  long  and  tedit)us  voyage  of 
seventy-two  days  gave  them  a  safe  anchorage  in  the  harbor 
of  Cape  Francois,  in  the  Island  of  St.  Domingo.  To  D'lber- 
ville  the  governor  gave  a  hearty  welcome,  and  bore  a  willing 
testimony  to  his  good  judgment. f 

[A.D.  1000.]     A  large  additional  ship  of  war,  rating  fifty 
guns,  commanded  by  Chateaumorant,  was  detailed  to  escort 
the  fleet  to  the  shores  of  Louisiana ;  and  on  the  first  of  Janu- 
ary, 1000,  the  colony,  thus  protected,  set  sail  from  St.  Domingo 
in  search  of  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi.     After  twenty-four 
days,  the  fleet  cast  anchor  oflf  the  Island  of  St.  Rose,  a  few 
miles  east  of  the  bay,  known  to  De  Soto  one  hundred  and  sixty 
years  before  as  the  Bay  of  Achusi,  and  subsequently  desig- 
nated by  the  Spaniards  as  the  Bay  of  St.  Mary  de  Galve.  J     A 
few  miles  up  the  bay  was  the  Spanish  settlement  of  Pensacola, 
protected  by  a  strong  fort  and  ample  garrison.     The  fleet 
cruised  off  the  mouth  of  Pensacola  Bay  for  several  days ;  but 
the  Spanish  governor,  obedient  to  his  orders,  and  to  the  max- 
ims of  the  commercial  system,  would  permit  no  foreign  vessel 
to  enter  the  harbor.     Sailing  further  to  the  west,  the  fleet  an- 
chored off  the  island  first  called  Massacre,  and  known  to  the 
French  subsequently  as  Dauphin  Island,  lying  west  of  the  pres- 
ent Bay  of  Mobile.     A  few  days  afterward  the  fleet  sailed 
westward,  and  the  water  near  the  coast  being  too  shallow  for 
the  large  vessel  from  the  St.  Domingo  station,  that  vessel  re- 
turned, and  the  frigates  anchored  near  the  Chandaleur  Groups, 
while  Iberville  explored  the  channel  between  Ship  Island  and 
Cat  Island,  and,  with  his  colony,  landed  upon  Ship  Island,  off 
the  mouth  of  the  Pascagoula  River.     Here  he  erected  huts  for 
his  people ;  and  afterward  discovered,  by  coasting  in  boats 


ii  ji 


*  Martin's  Lonisiana,  vol.  i,,  p.  141. 
t  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  353. 


t  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  300. 


198 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  If. 


I! 


along  the  shore,  the  P.iscagoula  River,  and  the  tribe  of  Biloxi 
Indians. 

Having  explored  the  coast,  and  ascertained  from  the  natives 
the  probable  course  and  distance  of  the  outlet  of  the  great 
river  St.  Louis,  or,  as  it  was  latterly  known  to  the  French, 
the  "  Hidden  River,"  Iberville,  on  the  27th  day  of  February, 
set  out  from  Ship  Island  in  boats,  to  explore  the  mouth,  which 
had,  as  yet,  never  been  entered  from  the  sea.  In  two  large 
barges,  one  commanded  by  himself  and  one  by  his  brother 
Bienville,  each  carrying  twenty-four  men,  Iberville  moved  south 
and  westward  along  the  coast.  Three  days  brought  them  to 
the  Balize,  and  they  entered,  on  the  second  day  of  March,  a 
wide  river  flowing  into  the  sea.  Father  Athanase,  a  Francis- 
can, who  had  been  a  companion  of  La  Salle  in  his  exploring 
voyage  in  1682,  declared  this  to  be  the  true  River  St.  Louis. 
The  water  was  turbid,  and  moved  in  a  vast  volume  to  the  sea, 
its  surface  bearing  down  large  quantities  of  floating  timber. 
It  could  be  no  other  than  the  Perdido,  or  "  Hidden  River." 
Iberville  doubted  the  father's  opinion.  He  expected  to  have 
seen  a  more  expansive  mouth,  and  could  not  believe  this  to  be 
the  mighty  river  of  the  West.  The  barges,  however,  were  di- 
rected to  proceed  up  the  stream,  and  soon  afterward  he  con- 
curred in  the  opinion  of  the  worthy  father.  As  they  advanced, 
all  doubt  was  dispelled  when  he  beheld  in  the  hands  of  the  In- 
dians, near  Bayou  Goula,  articles  which  had  been  distributed  by 
La  Salle  in  1682 ;  here,  also,  safely  preserved  by  the  wondering 
natives,  he  found  a  letter,  written  in  1685  by  De  Tonti  to  La 
Salle.  Not  far  from  this,  as  they  ascended,  he  saw  in  the  posses- 
sion of  the  natives  a  portion  of  a  coat  of  mail,  which,  in  all  prob- 
ability, had  remained  in  the  country  since  the  disastrous  expedi- 
tion of  De  Soto,  one  hundred  "  \d  sixty  years  before.  The  letter 
of  De  Tonti  was  dated  April  20th,  1685,  and  expressed  the  ex- 
treme disappointment  of  the  chevalier  in  failing  to  meet  La  Salle 
with  his  colony,  which  he  knew  had  already  sailed  from  France. 
In  this  letter  the  chevalier  further  stated  that  he  had  departed 
from  Canada  for  the  St.  Louis  River,  by  way  of  the  lakes  and 
Illinois  ;  that  he  had  descended  the  river  to  the  sea,  with  a  par- 
ty of  twenty-five  Canadian  French  and  thirty  Indians,  in  or- 
der to  join  the  colony  which  La  Salle  had  led  from  France  for 
the  settlement  of  Louisiana  ;  that,  having  continued  near  the 
mouth,  as  had  been  previously  agreed,  and  not  having  been 


30K  II. 

Biloxi 

mtives 
great 
'rench, 
)ruary, 
which 
0  large 
brother 
;d  south 
hem  to 
arch,  a 
•'rancis- 
cploring 
.  Louis, 
the  sea, 
timber. 
River." 
to  have 
bis  to  be 
were  di- 
he  con- 
Ivanced, 
f  the  In- 
uted  by 
mdering 
ti  to  La 
posses- 
all  prob- 
expedi- 
|he  letter 
the  ex- 
|La  Salle 
France, 
ieparted 
ikes  and 
Ith  a  par- 
Is,  in  or- 
-ance  for 
Inear  the 
ng  been 


A.D.  1099.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSHTI. 


199 


g 


able  to  obtain  any  intelligence  of  him  or  his  colony,  he  had  re- 
turned to  the  Illinois.* 

After  several  days  spent  in  exploring  the  country,  and  holding 
intercourse  with  the  Indian  tribes  near  the  mouth  of  Red  Riv- 
er, Iberville,  with  his  party,  descended  the  river  to  the  outlet  of 
Bayou  Iberville,  or  Manchac.  Here  being  informed  of  an  in- 
land route  through  to  the  Bay  of  St.  Louis,  he  first  explored 
the  pass  through  Bayou  Manchac  and  Lakes  Maurepas  and 
I'ontchartrain,  and  returned  to  the  settlement  on  Ship  Island, 
which  names  were  then  given  by  Iberville  himself. 

Soon  afterward,  Iberville  selected  a  site,  and  began  to  erect 
a  fort  upon  the  northeast  shore  of  the  Bay  of  Biloxi,  about  fif- 
teen miles  north  of  Ship  Island.  Here,  upon  a  sandy  shore, 
and  under  a  burning  sun,  upon  a  pine  barren,  he  settled  his  col- 
ony, about  eighty  miles  northeast  from  the  present  city  of  New 
Orleans.  This  occupation,  protected  by  a  fort,  under  the  com- 
mand of  Sauvolle,  with  four  bastions,  and  defended  by  twelve 
cannon,  was  the  sign  of  French  jurisdiction,  which  was  to  ex- 
tend from  the  Bay  of  Pensacola  on  the  east  to  the  Rio  del 
Norte  on  the  west.f 

Having  thus  located  his  colony,  and  protected  them  from  the 
danger  of  Indian  treachery  and  hostility,  he  made  other  pro- 
vision for  their  comfort  and  security,  and  then  set  sail  for 
France,  leaving  his  two  brothers,  Sauvolle  and  Bienville,  as  his 
lieutenants  ;  the  first  to  command  the  fort,  and  the  other  as 
general  superintendent  of  the  colony  under  him. 

The  movements  in  France  for  the  colonization  of  Louisiana 
had  not  been  unobserved  by  England.  The  jealous  eye  of  that 
grasping  power  had  been  observing  closely  the  preparations 
for  colonizing  Louisiana  and  the  shores  of  the  Mississippi. 
"  Father  Louis  Hennepin  had  been  taken  into  British  pay  un- 
der William  III.,  and  had  published  his  new  work,  in  which,  to 
bar  the  French  claim  of  discovery,  he  had,  with  impudent  false- 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  143,  144. 

t  According  to  Martin,  Bancroft,  and  others,  the  present  Bay  of  Biloxi  is  the  point 
where  Iberville  made  his  first  location  on  the  main  land,  and  erected  his  fort,  defended 
by  twelve  pieces  of  cannon ;  but  Stoddart  says  this  fort,  afterward  known  as  "  old  Bi- 
loxi," was  upon  the  Perdido  Bay,  twelve  miles  west  of  Pensacola.  As  the  French 
Bubsequeutly  claiiiied  to  the  Perdido  River  and  Bay,  which  was  finally  agreed  upon 
as  the  boundary  between  Louisiniia  and  Florida,  in  consequence  of  a  prior  occupation, 
we  incline  to  the  opinion  that  Stoddart,  who  was  personally  acquainted  with  the  coast, 
is  correct.  See  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  24,  26,  42,  and  136, 137  ;  see,  also,  Martin,  vol. 
i.,  p.  145,  and  Bancroft,  vol,  iii.,  p.  201. 


900 


llIHTOnV    (tP    THE 


[llOOK  II. 


IH 


mil 


hood,  claimed  to  have  himself  first  descended  the  Mississippi 
to  the  se.'i."  Then  it  wjis  he  interpolated  his  tormer  narrative 
with  a  journal  of  his  preten<led  voyage  down  the  river.  This 
had  heen  published  in  liondon,  at  the  very  time  the  fort  at  Hi- 
loxi  was  in  progress  ;  and  at  once  an  exploring  expedition  and 
colony,  under  the  auspices  of  (-oxe,  a  [iro|»rietor  of  New  .Jer- 
sey, was  dispatched  also  to  explore  the  mouths  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, under  the  escort  of  a  British  vessel  of  war4  conunanded 
by  ('aptain  Uarr. 

The  condition  of  the  French  colony  on  Ship  Island  and  on 
the  Hay  of  IJiloxi  was  far  from  ])leasant.  The  barren  sands 
of  the  coast  promised  but  little  in  point  of  agriculture,  and  the 
burning  suns  of  the  tropics  made  many  sigh  for  the  cool  breez- 
es of  Hudson's  IJay.  A  truce  with  the  Sjianiards  of  Pensacola 
might  be  obtained,  but  the  Indians  were  also  to  be  ccmciliated. 
The  latter  had  alrea<ly  been  visited  on  the  Mississijipi  by  Fa- 
thers Montigny  and  Davion,  and  were  considered  allies  of  the 
French. 

Bienville,  during  the  absence  of  Iberville,  lost  no  opportunity 
of  extending  his  explorations,  and  was  indefatigable  in  his  ex- 
ertions to  secure  the  prosperity  and  perpetuity  of  the  colony. 
Every  opportunity  of  conciliating  the  native  tribes,  as  ho  ex- 
plored the  bays  and  rivers  upon  the  coast,  was  duly  improved, 
by  attaching  them  to  the  French  interest,  and  impressing  them 
with  the  magnificence  of  France. 

In  September,  while  exploring  the  channel  of  the  Mississippi, 
with  his  boats  and  lead-lines,  a  few  miles  below  the  present  site 
of  New  Orleans,  Bienville  perceived  a  British  corvette  of  twelve 
guns  slowly  moving  up  the  stream.  Nothing  daunted  at  his 
defenseless  condition,  he  sent  a  flag  on  board  the  English  ship 
to  Captain  Barr,  informing  him  that  he  was  within  the  domin- 
ions of  his  most  Christian  majesty ;  that  if  he  persisted  in  as- 
cending the  river,  he  should  be  compelled  by  his  duty  to  use 
the  force  at  his  command  to  resist  their  advance :  he  signified 
that  there  were  strong  defenses  a  few  miles  above,  and  that  he 
had  ample  means  to  enforce  obedience  to  his  demands.  The 
Britons  grumbled  and  turned  about,  but  declared  that  Captain 
Wood  had  discovered  the  river  and  country  nearly  fifty  years 
before,!  and  that  they  would  return  with  force  sufficient  to  main- 


*  Bancroft's  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  202.    Also,  Martin,  voL  i.,  p.  149. 
t  N,  A.  lieview,  Jan.  7,  No.  1839. 


OOK  II. 

issippi 
rative 
This 
;  at  Hi- 
on  and 
w  Jcr- 
Missis- 
uiucied 

and  on 
1  sands 
ind  the 
1  bieez- 
nsacola 
•i  Hated. 
l)y  Fa- 
s  of  tlie 

Drtunity 
I  his  ex- 
colony. 
i  ho  ex- 
proved, 
tig  them 

sissippi, 
lent  site 
twelve 
at  his 
jish  ship 
domin- 
|d  in  !»s- 
to  use 
iignified 
that  he 
The 
Daptain 
y  years 
[o  niain- 

lo. 


A.D.  1009.] 


VAI.I-KV   OF    THE    MIHHIriHUTI. 


yoi 


tain  their  claim.  The  English  had  seen  with  a  jealous  eye 
the  advances  fd'the  French  from  Canada  to  the  Upper  Missis- 
sippi, and  now  they  were  making  active  advances  upon  the 
Ijower  Mississip[>i.  The  IJritish  crown  was  anxious  to  ])re- 
vent  these  latter  advances  into  what  was  claimed  as  a  j)art  of 
the  British  provinces.  Fiiigland  was  willing  t(»  sup|)lant  the 
French  in  the  occupancy  of  the  country,  and  to  reap  the  advan- 
tages of  their  discoveries.  But  the  attempt  on  the  part  f>f  Cap- 
fain  Barr  to  explore  the  Mississippi  was  abandoned,  and  he 
was  seen  no  more  hy  the  French.  The  pf>int  at  which  he  made 
his  return,  in  commemoration  of  that  circumstance,  has  since 
been  known  as  the  "  English  Turn."* 

Having  failed  to  dislodge  the  French  from  the  Mississippi, 
the  English  authorities  in  Carolina  subsequently  lost  n(»  o]>por- 
tunity  for  annoying  the  settlements  on  the  Mobile,  thnMigh  the 
Indian  tribes.  Yet  England  still  held  a  nominal  claim  west- 
ward to  the  Mississippi,  while  Spain  could  only  j)rotest  against 
llie  separation  of  what  she  was  pleased  to  call  the  government 
(if  Mexico;  for  France  was  destined  to  hold  the  Valley  of  the 
Mississippi,  as  it  were  in  trust,  for  a  people  yet  imborn,  as  an 
asylum  for  oppressed  humanity. 

During  the  past  summer,  sickness  and  bilious  fever  had  made 
sad  ravages  among  the  unacclimated  Europeans  and  Canadi- 
ans. Many  had  <lied  from  diseases  hicident  to  the  climate ; 
and  the  troops  had  also  suftered  severely,  and  their  numbers 
had  been  greatly  reduced.  Above  all,  the  commandant  of 
Fort  Bi'axi,  M.  Sauvolle,  had  died  during  the  summer,  leaving 
the  youthful  Bienville  sole  commandant  and  superintendent  of 
the  province. 

But  early  in  December  following,  D'Iberville  returned  with 
an  additional  colony  and  .a  detachment  of  troops,  in  company 
with  several  vessels  of  war.f  Up  to  this  time,  the  principal 
settlements  had  been  at  Ship  Island  .and  on  the  Bay  of  Biloxi ; 
others  had  been  begun  at  the  Bay  of  St.  Louis  and  on  the  Bay 
of  Mobile.     These  were  made  as  a  matter  of  convenience,  to 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  ]i.  149. 

t  Among  the  colonists  and  officers  of  tho  province  were  St  Dcnys  and  Maton,  with 
Mixty  Canadians.  In  this  arrival  came  also  Lesucur,  a  geologist  who  had  been  sent 
out  to  examine  some  greenish  earth  which  had  been  scon  high  np  the  Mississippi  by 
Dugay  and  Hennepin  in  1C8U.  Iberville  brought  the  king's  commission  to  Bienville 
ns  governor  of  the  province,  ond  Boisbriant  as  commander  of  the  f'-t.  Martin,  vol.  i., 
p.  150,  151. 


202 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  If, 


hold  and  occupy  the  country ;  for  his  principal  object  was  to 
colonize  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  itself.  When  he  learned 
that  the  English  meditated  a  settlement  on  that  river,  and  had 
sent  an  exploring  expedition  to  examine  its  channels  and  shores, 
he  resolved  no  longer  to  defer  the  occupation  of  the  river  by  a 
military  post.  Accordingly,  on  the  17th  of  January,  1700,  he 
set  out  from  the  Bay  of  St.  Louis  for  the  exploration  of  the 
Mississippi,  in  search  of  a  suitable  site  for  a  fort.  He*  soon  se- 
lected a  point,  supposed  to  be  above  ordinary  high  water,  about 
fifty- four  miles  above  the  mouth,  -nd  about  thirty-eight  miles 
below  the  present  city  of  New  Orleans.  Upon  this  ridge,  not 
far  from  Poverty  Point,  he  located  a  small  colony  and  erected 
a  small  fort.* 

[A.D.  1700.]  About  the  middle  of  February,  the  veteran 
Chevalier  de  Tonti  arrived  on  the  Lower  Mississippi,  with  a 
party  of  Canadian  French  from  the  Illinois.  He  found  Iberville 
at  his  newly-erected  fort,  arranging  the  settlements  for  the  colo- 
nization of  the  Lower  Mississippi.  The  experience  of  De  Tonti, 
his  knowledge  of  the  Indian  language  and  customs,  and  his  ac- 
quaintance with  several  tribes  on  the  river,  rendered  him  a  val- 
uable acquisition  to  the  new  colony.  With  his  aid,  Iberville  de- 
termined to  ascend  the  river  and  explore  the  country  upon  its 
banks,  and  form  friendly  alliances  with  the  native  tribes  of  the 
interior.  Accordingly,  he  hastened  to  detail  a  suitable  party,  in 
company  with  De  Tonti  and  Bienville,  to  ascend  the  river  in 
barges  and  canoes.  The  voyage  was  continued  as  far  as  the 
Natchez  ti'ibe,  nearly  four  hundred  miles  from  the  mouth.  On 
the  voyage,  D'Iberville  landed  at  various  points,  and  formed 
friendly  alliances  with  such  tribes  as  were  se*^  n ;  thereby  secur- 
ing for  his  colony  the  friendship  and  hospitality  of  the  natives, 
and  receiving  in  person  an  earnest  of  future  friendly  intercourse. 
He  had  commenced  the  exploration  of  Red  River  as  he  passed 
up,  but  determined  to  defer  it  to  a  future  time. 

D'Iberville  was  well  pleased  with  the  Natchez  tribe  and 
with  their  country.  This  tribe  was  found  to  be  powerful  and 
highly  improved :  they  had  made  considerable  advances  to- 
ward civilization ;  yet,  by  recent  wars,  they  had  been  reduced 
to  about  twelve  hundred  warriors.  The  Natchez  country 
w  as  deemed  the  most  desirable  in  the  province ;  suitable  for 
the  principal  colony,  and  for  the  headquarters  of  the  future 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  151. 


as  to 
nrned 
dhad 
hores, 
r  by  a 
00,  he 
of  the 
•on  se- 
,  about 
t  miles 
ge,  not 
jrected 

veteran 

with  a 
berville 
he  colo- 
e  Tonti, 
1  his  ac- 
m  a  val- 
■ville  de- 
upon  its 
js  of  the 
party, in 

river  in 

r  as  the 

ith.    On 
formed 

>y  secur- 
natives, 

srcourse. 

e  passed 

jribe  and 
Irful  and 
Inces  to- 
I  reduced 
country 
table  for 
Le  future 


A.D.  1700.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


203 


provincial  government ;  and  here  he  selected  an  elevated  bluff 
as  the  site  for  the  future  capital  of  the  province.  It  vv^as  the 
bluff  where  the  city  of  Natchez  now  stands.  The  site  was 
distinguished  by  the  name  of  "  Rosalie,"  in  honor  of  the  Count- 
ess of  Pontchartrain,  who  had  received  that  name  at  the  bap- 
tismal fount.*  He  designed  to  establish  a  fort  at  this  point, 
as  the  sign  of  French  jurisdiction ;  but  Fort  Rosalie  was  not 
erected  by  his  successors  until  sixteen  years  afterward.  The 
Count  of  Pontchartrain  had  been  the  friend  and  patron  of  Iber- 
ville's plan  of  colonizing  the  Mississippi,  which  received  all 
the  aid  which  his  influence  as  minister  of  marine  affairs  could 
give. 

In  many  ^jarticulars,  the  Natchez  tribes  differed,  in  the  time 
of  Iberville,  from  the  neighboring  tribes  and  nations,  both  in 
their  appearance  and  in  their  mode  of  civilization.  They  ex- 
erted an  extensive  influence  over  the  neighboring  tribes,  sev- 
eral of  which  were  in  alliance  with  them.  Of  all  these  allies, 
the  Tensas  were  strongest  in  their  resemblance,  in  their  per- 
sons, their  manners,  and  their  religion. 

Their  religion,  in  some  respects,  resembled  that  of  the  fire- 
worshipers  of  Persia.  Fire  was  the  emblem  of  their  divinity ; 
the  sun  was  their  god:  their  chiefs  were  called  "suns,"  and 
their  king  was  called  the  "  Great  Sun."  In  their  principal  tem- 
ple a  perpetual  fire  was  kept  burning  by  the  ministering  priest, 
who  likewise  offered  sacrifices  of  the  first  fruits  of  the  chase. 
In  extreme  cases,  they  offered  sacrifices  of  infant  children,  to 
appease  the  wrath  of  the  deity.  While  Iberville  was  there, 
one  of  the  temples  was  struck  by  lightning  and  set  on  fire.  The 
keeper  of  the  fane  solicited  the  squaws  to  throw  their  little  ones 
into  the  fire  to  appease  the  angry  divinity,  and  four  infants 
were  thus  sacrificed  before  the  French  could  prevail  on  them 
to  desist  from  the  horrid  rites.f 

After  Iberville  reached  the  Natchez  tribe,  the  Great  Sun,  or 
king  of  the  confederacy,  having  heard  of  the  approach  of  the 
French  commandant,  determined  to  pay  him  a  visit  in  person. 
As  he  advanced  to  the  quarters  of  Iberville,  he  was  borne  upon 
the  shoulders  of  some  of  his  men,  and  attended  by  a  great  reti- 
nue of  his  people.  He  bade  Iberville  a  hearty  welcome,  and 
showed  him  the  most  marked  attention  and  kindness  during  his 
stay.     A  treaty  of  friendship  was  concluded,  with  permission 

*  Martin's  Loaiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  153.  t  Idem. 


204 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


I'M: 


nHKi 


i'jl  i 


lllil 


[book  II. 


to  build  a  fort  and  to  establish  a  trading-post  among  them; 
which  was,  however,  deferred  many  years. 

"The  grand  chief  of  the  tribe  was  revered  as  of  the  family 
of  the  sun,  and  he  could  trace  his  descent  with  certainty  from 
the  nobles ;  for  the  inheritance  of  power  was  traced  exclusive- 
ly through  the  female  line.  Hard  by  the  temple,  on  an  artifi- 
cial mound  of  earth,  stood  the  hut  of  the  '  Great  Sun ;'  around 
it  were  grouped  the  cabins  of  the  tribe.  There,  for  untold 
years,  the  savage  had  freely  whispered  his  tale  of  love ;  had 
wooed  his  bride,  by  purchase,  from  her  father ;  had  placed  his 
trust  in  his  manitous ;  had  turned  at  daybreak  toward  the  East, 
to  hail  and  worship  the  beams  of  morning  ;  had  listened  to  the 
revelations  of  dreams ;  had  invoked  the  aid  of  the  medicine- 
men to  dance  the  medicine-dance ;  had  won  titles  of  honor  by 
prowess  in  war,  and  had  tortured  and  burned  his  prisoners. 
There  were  the  fields  where,  in  spring,  the  whole  tribe  had 
gone  forth  to  cultivate  the  maize  and  vines ;  there  the  scenes 
of  the  glad  festival  at  the  gathering  of  the  harvest ;  there  the 
natural  amphitheatres,  where  councils  were  convened  and  em- 
bassies were  received,  and  the  calumet  of  reconciliation  passed 
in  solemn  ceremony  from  lip  to  lip ;  there  the  dead  had  been 
arrayed  in  their  proudest  apparel,"  supplied  with  food  for  their 
long  journey ;  and  there  the  requiem  was  chanted  by  women, 
in  mournful  strains,  over  their  bones ;  and  there,  too,  when  a 
great  sun  died,  persons  of  the  same  age  were  strangled,  as  his 
escort  into  the  realms  of  shades.* 

D'Iberville  returned  to  the  fort  erecting  above  the  mouth  of 
the  Mississippi,  while  Bienville,  accompanied  by  St.  Denys,  a 
few  Canadians,  and  a  number  of  Indians,  ascended  Red  River 
as  far  as  the  Yatassee  tribe  of  Indians,  who  then  dwelt  chiefly 
upon  the  south  side  of  Red  River,  upon  the  Bayou  Pierre,  about 
thirty  miles  above  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Natchitoches. 
After  a  short  time  spent  on  the  north  side  of  Red  River,  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  salines,  Bienville  returned,  leaving  St.  Denys  to 
prosecute  the  exploration  of  the  country  on  Red  River  far  into 
the  West. 

Soon  afterward,  late  in  April,  Lesueur  set  out  with  twenty 
men  and  Indian  guides  for  the  country  of  the  Sioux,  high  up 
the  Mississippi,  in  quest  of  mineral  wealth.f 

*  Bancroft's  Histoiy  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iiL,  p.  359,  360. 

♦  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  153.    Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  27. 


e 
r 


lOK  II. 

them: 

family 

f  from 

lusive- 
artifi- 

iround 

untold 

e ;  had 

ced  his 

le  East, 

i  to  the 

gdicine- 

onor  by 

•isoners. 

ibe  had 

3  scenes 

here  the 

and  em- 

n  passed 

md  been 

for  their 
women, 
when  a 

id,  as  his 

nouth  of 
Denys,  a 
ed  River 
It  chiefly 
re,  about 
hitoches. 
er,  in  the 
lenys  to 
far  into 

twenty 
high  up 


A.D.  1702.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MlSSISSIPri. 


205 


[A.D.  1701.]  The  Spanish  governor  at  Pensacola,  unable 
to  expel  the  French  by  force,  continued  to  remonstrate  against 
their  settlements  within  the  limits  of  Florida.  The  English 
had  departed  from  the  Mississippi,  and  more  was  now  to  be 
apprehended  from  the  Spaniards  than  from  the  English. 

[A.D.  1702.]  Although  Iberville  considered  the  colonization 
of  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  his  chief  object,  yet  the  head- 
quarters of  the  commandant  remained  at  Biloxi.  In  the  spring 
of  1702,  war  had  been  declared  by  England  against  France 
and  Spain,  and  by  order  of  the  King  of  France  the  headquar- 
ters of  the  commandant  were  removed  to  the  western  bank  of 
the  Mobile  River.  This  was  the  first  European  settlement 
within  the  present  State  of  Alabama.  The  Spanish  settlement 
at  Pensacola  was  not  remote ;  but  as  England  was  now  the 
common  enemy,  the  French  and  Spanish  commandants  ar- 
ranged their  boundary  between  Mobile  and  Pensacola  Bays 
to  be  the  Perdido  River,  and  both  concurred  in  resisting  the 
common  enemy. 

Dauphin  Island  Harbor,  near  the  entrance  of  Mobile  Bay, 
was  used  as  a  convenient  station  for  the  fleet  during  the  sum- 
mer ;  and  although  in  a  sterile  pine  region,  it  served  as  an  ex- 
cellent shelter  for  the  ships,  and  for  many  years  afterward  it 
was  an  important  port. 

English  emissaries  from  Carolina  and  Virginia  penetrated 
westward  to  the  head  waters  of  the  Tombigby  and  Alabama 
Rivers,  and  excited  the  Indian  tribes  to  hostilities  against  the 
Spanish  and  French  settlements  near  the  coast.  Others  from 
Virginia  penetrated  westward  to  the  Wabash,  and  excited  the 
northwestern  Indians  against  the  settlements  and  traders  of  the 
Illinois  country.*  Instigated  by  them,  the  Coroas  had  killed 
the  Jesuit  Foucault,  a  missionary  among  the  Natchez. 

The  whole  colony  of  Southern  Louisiana  as  yet  did  not  num- 
ber thirty  families  besides  soldiers.f  Bilious  fevers  had  cut 
ofl"  many  of  the  first  emigrants,  and  famine  and  Indian  hostility 
now  threatened  the  remainder.  But  Iberville  had  been  inde- 
fatigable in  his  exertions  to  protect  and  provide  for  the  colony. 
He  had,  by  his  detachments,  partially  explored  the  remotest 
regions ;  the  channels  and  passes  of  the  Mississippi  had  been 
explored  ;  the  outlets  and  bayous  of  the  Atchafalaya,  Plaque- 
mines, La  Fourche,  and  Manchac,  as  well  as  the  lake  routes, 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  159-164.  t  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  205. 


206 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


had  been  discovered  ;  aided  by  the  Canadian  French,  the  great 
tributaries  of  the  Mississippi  had  been  explored  for  more  than 
a  thousand  miles  ;  the  Indian  tribes  had  been  conciUated,  and 
were  the  friends  of  the  French ;  and  missionary  stations  had 
been  established  among  them  by  Jesuits  from  Canada.  The 
general  extent  and  natural  resources  of  the  province  were 
known.  St.  Denys,  in  the  year  1700,  had  explored  Red  River, 
with  a  party  of  French  and  Indians,  for  nearly  a  thousand 
miles.  Other  parties  had  explored  the  lower  portions  of  the 
Washita  and  Yazoo.  The  Arkansas  Rn  er  had  likewise  been 
explored  far  above  the  present  town  of  Little  Rock.  Lesueur 
had  likewise  explored  the  Upper  Mississippi  as  far  as  the  St. 
Peter's  River,  in  search  of  precious  metals  of  silver  and  gold.* 
But  all  their  dreams  of  precious  stones  and  metals  led  them 
only  into  the  remote  wilds  of  the  West,  to  sicken  and  die,  or  to 
return  filled  with  disappointment. 

In  all  the  explorations  and  excursions  throughout  this  vast 
province,  the  splendid  water-courses,  the  great  high-ways  of 
nature,  afforded,  by  means  of  boats  and  canoes,  facilities  of 
travel  unsurpassed  in  the  world.  The  light  canoe,  propelled 
by  the  vigorous  arm  of  the  voyageur,  traversed  the  most  rapid 
streams  with  speed  but  little  inferior  to  the  power  of  steam. 
Did  a  rapid  or  perpendicular  fall  obstruct  the  channel,  the 
same  sturdy  hands  dragged  the  light  canoe  over  the  rapid,  or 
carried  it  around  the  falls  and  over  the  portage. 

[A.D.  1704.]  The  colony  had  suffered  much  from  sickness. 
We  have  said  SauvoUe  had  fallen  an  early  victim  to  bilious 
fever,  leaving  the  youthful  Bienville  in  command  of  the  prov- 
ince. D'Iberville,  attacked  with  yellow  fever  in  the  West  In- 
dies, had  escaped  with  his  life ;  but  his  health  was  gone.  Un- 
able to  sustain  the  influence  of  a  tropical  climate,  he  had  re- 
tired to  France ;  after  more  than  a  year,  he  attempted  to  do 
service  in  the  West  Indies,  but  here  he  was  attacked  with  a 

*  Nothing  was  done  the  first  two  years  except  to  explore  the  country  and  form  friend- 
ly alliances  with  the  numerous  tribes  of  Indians.  Stoddart,  on  the  authority  of  a  MS. 
narrative  of  La  Harpe,  during  his  long  service,  says  that  Lesueur  ascended  the  St. 
Peter's  River  to  the  mouth  of  the  Blue  Earth  River,  where  in  1702  he  erected  a  fort, 
called  "L'Huillier,"  in  latitude  44°  13'  north,  which  was  abandoned  the  next  year  on 
account  of  the  hostility  of  the  Sioux.  Other  posts  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  above 
the  Wisconsin,  were  abandoned  at  the  same  time. 

A  settlement  and  mission  were  established  on  the  Washita,  probably  at  Sicily  Island, 
in  1703,  and  another  on  the  Yazoo. — See  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  27. 

In  1705,  the  mineral  explorers  ascended  the  Missouri  as  far  as  the  Kanzas  River, 
and  finding  the  Indians  friendly,  they  erected  a  fort  on  an  island  above  the  mouth  of 
the  Osage  River. — Idem.  p.  28. 


ickness. 

bilious 

prov- 

Vest  In- 

Un- 

lad  re- 

to  do 

with  a 


cily  Island. 

zas  River, 
mouth  of 


A.D.   1710.] 


VALLEY   OP   THE    MISSISStPPI. 


207 


severe  disease,  which  terminated  his  life  at  Havana,  early  in 
July,  1706.     In  him  the  colony,  as  well  as  the  French  navy, 
lost  a  hero  worthy  their  regret.*     Thus  perished  the  bold  and 
persevering  founder  of  the  province  of  Louisiana,  a  martyr  to 
the  glory  of  France,  as  La  Salle  had  been  a  few  years  before. 
[A.D.  1710.]     Louisiana  was  as  yet  only  a  vast  wilderness, 
nominally  under  the  jurisdiction  of  France.     During  the  first 
ten  years  of  the  colony,  the  population  had  been  repeatedly 
augmented  by  additional  emigrants  from  France,  and  some 
from  Canada.     Yet  they  merely  lived  ;  prosper  they  could  not, 
since  agriculture  was  neglected,  and  the  improvident  emigrants 
were  scattered  over  a  vast  country,  vainly  searching  for  gold 
and  silver  and  precious  stones,  or  seeking  wealth  in  the  paltry 
traffick  of  furs  and  skins  purchased  of  the  Indians.     Those  who 
remained  stationary  were  settled  upon  the  barren  shores  of 
Mobile,  of  Biloxi,  and  of  St.  Louis  Bay,  with  an  uncertain  de- 
pendence upon  hunting  and  fishing,  or  the  precarious  bounty 
of  the  savages.    Many  of  them,  with  childish  confidence,  seemed 
to  have  expected  annual  supplies  from  France,  or  that  the  na- 
tives would  continue  to  supply  their  wants.     Led  away  by  the 
most  unreasonable  hopes  as  to  the  spontaneous  products  of 
the  country,  they  deemed  labor  or  provident  attention  on  their 
part  wholly  superfluous.     They  even  entertained  the  belief 
that  the  "wool  of  the  buffalo,  which  abounded  in  the  prairies, 
would  yield  a  valuable  commodity  for  export.     Instead  of 
building   comfortable  houses   for  permanent  residence,  they 
roamed  to  the  most  remote  regions  in  quest  of  mines  of  pre- 
cious metals.     Every  new  specimen  of  earth,  to  their  distem- 
pered imaginations,  was  some  valuable  mineral ;  every  brill- 
iant ore  or  carburet  was  pure  gold.     Nor  was  the  government 
of  France  free  from  the  delusion.     The  ministry  had  directed 
that  a  number  of  buffaloes  should  be  caught  and  tamed,  to  prop- 
agate their  species  in  France,  for  the  sake  of  their  wool.    Large 
quantities  of  earths  were  shipped  to  France  from  the  Upper 
Mississippi,  to  be  assayed  by  experienced  smelters,  in  hopes  of 
proving  it  a  valuable  oxyd  of  some  precious  metal.     The  most 
extravagant  tales  of  designing  men  were  received  with  the 
greediness  of  entire  belief;!  rewards  were  paid  to  those  who 
gave  intelligence  of  valuable  mines,  and  extravagant  discover- 
ies multiplied  in  proportion  to  the  rewards  offered. 


*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  205. 


t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  155. 


208 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book   II. 


Hence  it  is  not  strange  that  the  colony  suflered  from  want 
Httle  short  of  starvation.  Several  times  the  colony  was  driv- 
en to  extreme  suffering  for  want  of  the  necessary  staff  of  life ; 
and  in  the  year  1701,  disease  had  succeeded  to  famine,  for  most 
of  the  colonists  had  sickened,  and  death  had  reduced  the  en- 
tire number  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  souls.  Three  years  after- 
ward, or  in  the  year  1704,  the  same  suffering  was  experienced 
for  food.  The  horrors  of  famine  and  pestilence  combined 
were  averted  only  by  the  timely  relief  afforded  by  the  Span- 
ish governor  of  Pensacola.*  For  many  years  the  colony  was 
much  hai'assed  by  Indian  hostilities,  incited  by  the  British  emis- 
saries and  traders  from  Carolina ;  instead  of  increasing  the 
number  of  settlers  in  compact  settlements,  the  colonial  gov- 
ernment was  anxious  to  spread  them  thinly  over  a  vast  ter- 
ritory ;  hence  they  were  easily  cut  off  by  the  savages.  The 
first  maritime  trade  with  the  colony  was  in  January,  1709,  ten 
years  after  the  landing  of  Iberville's  colony.  This  was  by  a 
vessel  laden  with  provisions,  brandy,  and  tobacco  from  Ha- 
vana, for  the  purpose  of  trade  ;t  but  the  colonists  had  nothing 
to  barter  but  hides  and  peltries,  obtained  from  the  natives. 

The  whole  history  of  the  small  colonies  in  Louisiana,  for 
ten  years,  had  been  only  a  tissue  of  the  friendly  or  hostile  re- 
lations between  detached  parties  or  settlements,  and  the  differ- 
ent Indian  tribes ;  of  difficulties  encountered  by  the  settlers  in 
their  continual  efforts  to  extend  the  power  and  influence  of 
France  over  the  savages  by  treaty  or  by  trade.  But  now  they 
began  to  perceive  their  error.  They  became  convinced  that 
the  wealth  of  Louisiana  was  in  the  soil,  susceptible  of  produ- 
cing every  thing  requisite  for  any  community.  When  agricul- 
ture began  to  flourish,  provisions  became  plenty.  The  colony 
soon  assumed  the  appearance  of  a  regularly-organized  com- 
munity. Indian  girls  were  employed  as  servants  in  private 
families ;  twenty  negro  slaves  were  now  in  the  colony,  and 
other  evidences  of  luxury  appeared.  Yet  the  male  population, 
refusing  to  labor,  amused  themselves  in  every  species  of  idle- 
ness. The  colony  now  presented  a  population  of  only  three 
hundred  and  eighty  souls,  distributed  into  five  settlements,  re- 
mote from  each  other.  These  were  on  Ship  Island,  Cat  Island, 
at  Biloxi,  Mobile,  and  on  the  Mississippi.  The  meager  soil  of 
the  islands  and  of  the  coast,  the  marshes  of  the  Mississippi, 


Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  161,  163. 


t  Idem,  p.  169. 


OOK    II. 


A.D.   1711.] 


VALLEY    or    THE    MISSL^SIPPl. 


200 


n  want 
is  driv- 
ot'  life ; 
or  most 
the  en- 
[■s  after- 
rienced 
unbilled 
e  Span- 
jny  was 
sh  emis- 
sing  the 
lial  gov- 
vast  ter- 
ss.     The 
1709,  ten 
vas  by  a 
rem  Ha- 
l  nothing 
lives, 
siana,  for 
ostile  re- 
he  differ- 
lettlers  in 
lence  of 
[now  they 
iced  that 
f  produ- 
agricul- 
le  colony 
;ed  corn- 
private 
lony,  and 
tpulation, 
of  idle- 
ily  three 
ents,  re- 
al Island, 
er  soil  of 
ssissippi, 

169. 


where  D'Iberville  had  erected  a  small  fort,  at  the  mercy  of 
every  flood  of  the  river,  and  the  noxious  insects  and  reptiles, 
no  less  than  the  sighing  of  the  pines  near  Mobile,  warned  the 
new  emigrants  to  seek  homes  further  inland.  The  French 
court  began  likewise  to  see  that  a  change  in  the  government 
;ui(l  general  policy  of  the  province  of  Louisiana  was  reijuisite. 
The  ct)lony,  so  far,  had  failed  to  meet  the  expectations  of  the 
crown  or  the  people  of  France,  and  a  change  was  iiulispensable. 

Heretofore  the  settlements  of  Louisiana  had  been  a  depend- 
ence on  New  France  or  Canada,  although  separated  by  a  wil- 
derness of  two  thousand  miles  in  extent.  Now  it  was  to  bo 
made  an  independent  government,  responsible  only  to  the  crown, 
and  comprising  also  the  Illinois  country  under  its  jurisdiction. 

[A.D.  1711.]  The  government  of  Louisiana  was  accord- 
ingly placed  in  the  hands  of  a  governor-general.  The  head- 
quarters, or  seat  of  the  colonial  government,  was  established 
at  Mobile,  and  a  new  fort  was  erected  upon  the  site  of  the 
pi'esent  city  of  Mobile.*  Dirou  d'Artaguette,  as  commissary 
ordonnateur,  arrived  early  in  the  year  1711,  and  entered  upon 
his  duties.     De  Muys,  the  governor-general,  had  died  on  the 


vovage. 


It  was  determined  that  the  colonists  should  depend  upon 
their  own  exertions  and  industry  for  the  principal  necessaries 
of  life ;  that  agriculture  should  be  fostered,  and  that  the  land, 
which  heretofore  had  been  neglected,  should  be  taxed  to  sup- 
ply those  necessaries ;  that  France  would  supply  only  such 
articles  as  could  not  be  produced  in  the  province.  But  the 
settlements  were  as  yet  confined  to  a  few  sandy  islands,  and 
to  the  sterile  coast  from  Mobile  Bay  westward  to  the  Bay  of 
St.  Louis,  and  they  could  not  hope  to  succeed  in  tilling  a  bar- 
ren soil ;  although  the  lakes  and  bays  supplied  them  in  abund- 
ance with  all  kinds  of  fish  and  water-fowl,  they  required  bread, 
the  product  of  a  generous  earth. 

Bienville  had  been  appointed  governor-general  of  the  prov- 
ince ;  he  had  before  seen  the  necessity  of  agricultural  settle- 
ments, and  his  eye  had  rested  upon  the  deep  alluvions  of  the 
Mississippi,  which  were  covered  with  heavy  forests  and  an  im- 
penetrable undergrowth  of  cane,  vines,  and  briers.  To  remove 
these,  not  only  time,  but  vast  labor,  was  required.  Yet  Bien- 
ville had  seen  that  no  agricultural  colony  could  prosper  near 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  343. 

Vol.  I.— O 


210 


lliaTORY   OF   THE 


[book  II. 


Mobile,  and  ho  sought  to  Ibrin  settlements  on  the  Mississippi 
alluvions. 

Although  exploring  parties  had  been  sent  to  the  remotest 
portions  of  the  province ;  although  every  Indian  tribe  had  been 
visited,  yet  not  one  permanent  settlement  had  been  made  on 
the  banks  of  the  Mississippi ;  not  one  vestige  of  civilized  life 
had  been  made  upon  the  most  fertile  regions  of  the  vnst  prov- 
ince ;  not  one  field  or  village  greeted  the  traveler's  eye,  if  we 
except  the  small  fort  of  Iberville,  toward  the  mouth,  which  had 
now  been  abandoned.  The  government  of  France,  embar- 
rassed and  burdened  with  debt,  was  unable  to  maintain  the 
helpless  cohmy. 

[A.D.  17ia.]  In  France,  it  was  still  believed  that  Louisiana 
presented  a  rich  field  for  enterprise  and  speculation.  The 
court,  therefore,  determined  to  place  the  resources  of  the  prov- 
ince under  the  influence  of  individual  enterprise.  For  this  pur- 
pose, a  grant  of  exclusive  privileges,  in  all  the  commerce  of 
the  province,  for  a  term  of  fifteen  years,  was  made  to  Anthony 
Crozat,  a  rich  and  influential  merchant  of  France.  His  charter 
was  dated  September  20th,  1712.  At  this  time  the  limits  of 
Louisiana,  as  claimed  by  France,  were  very  extensive.  As 
specified  in  the  charter  of  Crozat,  it  was  "  bounded  by  New 
Mexico  on  the  west,  by  the  English  lands  of  Carolina  on  the 
east,  including  all  the  establishments,  ports,  havens,  rivers,  and 
principally  the  port  and  haven  of  the  Isle  of  Dauphin,  hereto- 
fore called  Massacre ;  the  River  St.  Louis,  heretofore  called 
Mississippi,  from  the  edge  of  the  sea  as  far  as  the  Illinois,  to- 
gether with  the  River  St.  Philip,  heretofore  called  Missouri, 
the  River  St.  Jerome,  heretofore  called  Wabash,  with  all  the 
lands,  lakes,  and  rivers  mediately  or  immediately  flowing  into 
any  part  of  the  River  St.  Louis  or  Mississippi."* 

Thus  Louisiana,  as  claimed  by  France,  at  that  early  period 
embraced  all  the  immense  regions  of  the  United  States,  from 
the  Alleghany  Mountains  on  the  east,  to  the  Rocky  Mountains 
on  the  west,  and  northward  to  the  great  lakes  of  Canada.  As 
Bancroft  observes,  "  Louisiana  was  held  to  embrace  the  whole 
Valley  of  the  Mississippi.  Not  a  fountain  bubbled  on  the  west 
of  the  Alleghanies  but  was  claimed  as  being  within  the  French 
empire.  Half  a  mile  from  the  head  of  the  southern  branch  of 
the  Savannah  River  is  *  Herbert's  Spring,*  which  flows  into 

*  Martm's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  178,  179.    See,  also,  Stoddard,  p.  133-135. 


DOK  II. 


A.D.   1713.] 


VALLEY  OF  THE  MISHMflim. 


211 


iissippi 

molest 
id  been 
ade  on 
:ed  life 
t  prov- 
!,  if  we 
icli  had 
einbar- 
ain  the 

)uisiana 
1.     The 
le  prov- 
ihis  pur- 
lerce  of 
Vnthony 
I  charter 
limits  of 
ve.     As 
by  New 
a  on  the 
ers,  and 
I,  hereto- 
|e  called 
inois,  to- 

issouri, 
Ih  all  the 

ing  into 

ly  period 

]es,  from 
lountains 
Ida.  As 
le  whole 
the  west 
French 
ranch  of 
^ws  into 

1-135. 


I 


the  Mississippi ;  strangers  who  drank  of  it  would  say  that  they 
liad  tasted  French  waters."* 

On  the  west,  France  claimed  to  the  Hay  of  St.  Bcrniird,  fifty 
miles  west  of  the  Rio  Colorado,  where  La  Salle,  in  lOHf),  lo- 
cated his  nnfortmmte  colony,  the  remains  of  which,  if  any  re- 
mained, are  supposed  to  have  been  destroyed  or  carried  ort'by 
the  Spaniards  in  KlSO.f  A  large  portion  of  the  states  of  Mis- 
sissippi and  Alabama,  not  drained  by  the  Mississippi  River, 
were  also  a  part  of  Louisiana,  and  so  remained  for  more  than 
sixty  years,  or  until  the  dismembernicnt  in  170.1. 

Up  to  this  time,  in  thirteen  years,  there  had  been  not  less  than 
twenty-five  hundred  settlers  of  all  kinds  introduced  into  Lou- 
isiana, who  had  been  distributed  in  distant  explorations  and 
scattered  settlements  on  the  coast  west  of  Mobile.  Many  had 
died ;  some  had  remained  in  the  Illinois  country.  Yet  the 
colony  had  been  a  source  of  great  expense  to  the  crown.  Al- 
ready 089,000  livres,  or  about  $170,000,1  had  been  expended, 
when  the  value  of  money  was  not  reduced  by  paper. 

[A.D.  1713.]  The  French  population  in  all  this  region  was 
still  only  a  few  hundred  indolent  and  ignorant  colonists,  besides 
u  few  troops  in  the  forts.  At  the  time  Crozat's  charter  was 
granted,  the  whole  number  of  settlers  in  Lovi^er  Louisiana  con- 
sisted chiefly  of  twenty-eight  families,  whose  occupation,  be- 
sides fishing  and  hunting,  was  the  cultivation  of  small  tracts  of 
sterile  lands  for  gardens,  in  the  pine  regions  around  the  bays 
of  Biloxi,  St.  Louis,  and  Mobile.  The  soldiers,  distributed  in 
the  several  garrisoned  forts,  consisted  of  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-five men,  comprising  two  coinpanies  of  infimtry  with  fifty 
men  in  each,  and  seventy-live  Canadian  volunteers.  There 
were  also  at  this  time  twenty  negro  slaves,  a  few  Jesuits  and 
Franciscans,  and  king's  oflicers.  The  whole  number  of  Euro- 
peans in  Lower  Louisiana  was  three  hundred  and  eighty  souls, 
and  about  three  hundred  head  of  cattle.  There  were  also  a 
few  settlements  on  the  Kaskaskia  and  Wabash  Rivers,  as  well 
as  upon  the  IMinois.  Such  was  the  feeble  condition  of  the  col- 
ony in  Louisiana,  the  whole  commerce  of  which  was  secured 
to  M.  Crozat  as  a  monopoly,  together  with  the  privilege  of 
working  all  the  mines. 

Yet  Crozat  entered  upon  the  enterprise  with  zeal  and  ac- 


*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  343. 
t  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  29. 


t  Martiu's  Loaisiona,  vol.  i.,  p.  S03. 


I 


212 


HISTORY  OF   THE 


[book  II. 


tivity.  He  expected  to  derive  great  profit  from  the  fur-trade 
and  traffick  with  the  Indians.  But  the  prospect  of  discovering 
rich  mines  of  gold  and  silver  held  out  to  his  enraptured  vision 
sources  of  boundless  wealth,  and  tempted  enterprise  and  ex- 
pense. In  the  line  of  commercial  trade,  the  demands  of  the 
Spanish  settlements  of  New  Mexico,  Florida,  and  the  West 
Indies  promised  the  most  certain  revenue  of  the  precious  met- 
als. The  commerce  of  these  countries  he  vainly  hoped  to  mo- 
nopolize by  favor,  intrigue,  or  otherwise. 

Among  the  many  exclusive  privileges  granted  by  his  charter, 
besides  the  trade  and  commerce  of  the  province,  and  of  all  the 
Indian  tribes,  and  the  exclusive  privilege  of  working  all  the 
mines  of  precious  metals,  was  that  of  importing  from  the  coast 
of  Africa,  for  sale,  one  ship-load  of  negroes  every  year. 

"  La  Motte  Cadillac,  now  royal  governor  of  Louisiana,  be- 
came his  partner;  and  the  merchant  proprietary  of  Detroit 
sought  fortune  by  discovering  mines  and  encroaching  on  the 
colonial  monopolies  of  Spain."  "  But  the  latter  attempt  met 
with  no  success  whatever."*  A  vessel  was  sent  to  Vera  Cruz 
with  a  rich  cargo  for  sale,  but  it  was  not  allowed  to  dispose  of 
its  merchandise,  and  every  Spanish  harbor  in  the  Gulf  of  Mex- 
ico was  closed  against  the  vessels  of  Crozat.  The  occupation 
of  Louisiana  itself  was  deemed  an  encroachment  upon  Spanish 
territory. 

Failing  in  this  quarter,  M.  Crozat  caused  settlements  or  trad- 
ing-posts to  be  made  in  the  most  remote  parts  of  the  province, 
while  explorations  were  extended  into  the  most  distant  known 
tribes.  Under  St.  Denys,  a  settlement  and  trading-post  was 
established  on  Red  River,  on  the  site  of  the  present  town  of 
Natchitoches,  in  the  present  Slate  of  Louisiana.  St.  Den- 
ys also  explored  Red  River  much  further,  and  advanced  on 
a  tour  of  observation  as  far  as  the  Rio  Bravo  del  Norte,  the 
present  western  limit  of  Texas.f     About  the  same  time,  a 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  347. 

t  St.  Denys,  in  1714,  was  dispatched  with  thirty  men  to  Nntchitoches,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  forming  a  settlement.  He  was  also  instmctcd  to  explore  the  country  westward, 
ami  to  observe  the  movements  of  the  Spaniards  on  tlie  Rio  Bravo,  and  to  see  whether 
tht-y  had  advonced  over  that  river  into  Lotiisiana.  He  found  that  they  had  fonned  a 
settlement  on  the  west  side  of  the  Rio  Bravo,  where  they  had  erected  a  fort,  which 
was  called  the  pnsidio  of  St.  John  the  Baptist.  No  settlement  had  then  been  made  bv 
them  east  of  that  river ;  but  they  claimed  jurisdiction  over  the  country  eastward  to  Red 
River,  under  the  name  of  tlie  province  of  "Texas,"  signifying  "friends,"  because  tho 
Indians  were  friendly. 


A.D.   1715.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


213 


or  trad- 
ovince, 
known 

lost  was 
own  of 
t.  Den- 

nced  on 
rte,  the 
time,  a 


\r  tlio  pur 

Iwcstwnrd, 

\o  whether 

foniiud  a 

fort,  which 

niailo  by 

[ird  to  lied 

Dcausu  tho 


I 


small  settlement  and  trading-post  was  established  on  the  Ya- 
zoo, and  on  Sicily  Island,  and  high  up  the  Washita,  on  the  site 
of  the  present  town  of  Monroe,  afterward  known  as  the  "  post 
of  Washita."  M.  Charleville,  one  of  M.  Crozat's  traders,  pen- 
etrated the  Shawanese  tribes,  then  known  as  the  "  Chouanoes," 
upon  the  Cumberland  River.  His  store  was  situated  upon  a 
mound  near  the  present  site  of  Nashville,  on  the  west  side  of 
the  Cumberland  River,  near  French-lick  Creek,  and  about  sev- 
enty yards  from  each  stream.* 

[A.D.  1714.]  Soon  afterward,  with  the  aid  of  a  band  of 
(^hoctas,  a  fort  was  built  on  the  Coosa  River,  two  leagues 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Tallapoosa,  upon  an  isthmus,  where 
both  streams  approach  within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  each 
other.  This  post  was  nearly  four  hundred  miles  above  the 
mouth  of  the  Alabama  River ;  a  garrison  was  placed  in  it,  and 
the  post  was  subsequently  called  "  Fort  Toulouse."  The  site 
was  the  same  occupied  by  "  Fort  Jackson"  just  one  hundred 
years  afterward. 

[A.D.  1715.]  In  all  his  calculations  and  expectations,  M. 
Crozat  was  doomed  to  be  sadly  disappointed.  After  nearly 
three  years  spent  in  fruitless  negotiations  with  the  Spanish 
viceroy  of  Mexico  relative  to  commercial  intercourse  with 
the  Spanish  ports  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  after  much  de- 
lay, vexation,  and  expense,  his  vessels  were  prohibited  from 
trading  in  any  of  the  Spanish  ports.  He  then  attempted  to 
institute  commercial  relations  by  land  for  supplying  the  inte- 
rior provinces  of  New  Mexico ;  but  his  goods  were  seized 
and  his  agents  imprisoned,  after  a  persevering  effort  of  near- 
ly five  years.f 

The  same  year,  more  effectually  to  hold  the  country,  the  French  established  a  small 
post  and  mission  upon  the  upper  tributaries  of  tho  Sabine :  the  post  was  known  as  the 
I>ost  "  Le  Dout,"  and  was  in  existence  until  tho  treaty  of  1763,  when  Louisiana  was 
I'cdud  to  Spain.  Another  small  post  bud  also  been  erected  about  thirty  miles  west 
of  the  present  town  of  Nacogdoches,  wliich  also  was  kept  up  for  many  years. 

During  the  tirst  thirty  years  after  the  settlement  cf  Louisiana,  the  French  command- 
ants kept  a  watchful  eye  upon  the  Spaniards,  and  sent  frequent  detachmeutB  to  tho 
western  parts  of  Texas. — See  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  30,  31,  and  41. 

*  See  Haywood's  History  of  Tennessee. 

t  In  1715,  La  Motte  sent  St  Donys  as  envoy  to  Mexico,  to  negotiate  a  treaty  of  co 
lonial  commerce  with  the  vin  ■  In  this  he  was  snccessfnl;  and  friendly  relations 
were  established  between  the  Freiu'h  of  Louisiana  and  the  Spanish  settlements  of  the 
Rio  Bravo  during  the  years  171(i  and  1717.  In  1718,  St.  Denys  was  again  in  Mexico 
us  agent  of  La  Motte  and  Crozat,  with  valuable  merchandise  to  exchange  for  such  ar- 
ticles and  commodities  as  were  useful  in  Louisiana.  But  the  viceroy  had  died,  and 
liis  successor,  regardless  of  treaty  obligations,  seized  St.  Denys  as  a  smuggler  and  spy, 


214 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  II. 


The  trade  with  the  Indians  also  failed  to  meet  his  expecta- 
tions. The  English  emissaries  from  Carolina  were  active  in 
their  efforts  to  excite  the  tribes  east  of  the  Mississippi  to  hos- 
tilities against  the  French.  Where  this  w^as  impracticable, 
they  endeavored  to  annoy  the  French  trade  by  supplying  the 
same  articles  at  reduced  prices.  The  mines  of  Louisiana  were 
principally  of  lead,  copper,  and  iron,  all  of  which  were  found 
in  great  abundance ;  but  they  were  not  profitable.  Much 
money  had  been  spent  in  searching  for  gold  and  silver,  with- 
out any  recompense.  Failing  to  realize  any  profit  from  all  his 
contemplated  resources,  he  was  unable  to  meet  his  engage- 
ments with  his  workmen,  agents,  and  troops,  and  dissatisfac- 
tion ensued.  He  had  expended  425,000  livres  in  his  operations, 
and  had  realized  from  all  the  sources  of  trade  only  300,000, 
leaving  him  the  loser  of  125,000  livres,  or  about  $30,000.* 
His  partner.  La  Motte,  the  governor,  had  died  recently. 

[A.D.  1716.]  As  yet  no  permanent  settlement  had  been 
made  at  Natchez.  A  few  traders  and  hunters  had  frequented 
that  beautiful  region,  and  some  stragglers  had  taken  up  their 
abode  among  the  Natchez  Indians.  A  difficulty  had  occurred, 
and  some  Frenchmen  had  been  plundered,  and  one  or  two  had 
been  murdered.  A  feeling  of  hostility  manifesting  itself  among 
some  of  the  tribe,  it  was  deemed  expedient  and  prudent  to 
erect  a  fort  and  to  place  a  small  garrison  in  the  Natchez 
country.  Bienville,  who  was  now  again  governor  of  the  prov- 
ince, repaired  to  the  Natchez  tribe  in  June,  and,  after  settling 
the  difficulty  with  much  sternness  and  severity,  he  began  the 
erection  of  the  fort,  which  had  been  previously  ordered  by  the 
king's  government.  A  garrison  of  eighteen  men,  under  the 
command  of  M.  Pailloux,  was  left  to  defend  the  post  and  pro- 
tect the  traders.! 

This  fort  was  erected  on  the  site  selected  by  his  brother 
Iberville  sixteen  yoars  before,  and  the  name  by  him  selected 
was  now  confirmed,  and  the  post  was  called  "  Fort  Rosalie." 
This  fort  was  situated  remote  from  the  bluff  which  overlooks 
the  river.     Its  site  was  probably  near  the  eastern  limit  of  the 

confined  him  in  a  dungeon,  and  confiscated  his  goods  as  contraband.  St.  Denys,  for 
more  than  two  years,  had  been  married  to  a  Spanish  lady  of  noble  descent ;  and  at 
length  the  viceroy,  to  satisfy  popular  feeling,  liberated  him  to  the  city  bounds.  In 
September,  1718,  he  escaped  on  horseback,  and  at  length,  after  more  than  six  months, 
reached  Louisiana  in  April,  1719. — Sec  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  33,  34  ;  also,  Martin's 
Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  191.  *  Idem,  p.  C5.  t  Martin's  Louisiana,  \ui.  i.,  p.  190. 


t 
f 


A.D.   1717.] 


VALLEY  OF    THE    MlSSlgSIPPI. 


215 


enys,  for 
and  nt 
inds.  lu 
months, 
Martin's 
p.  190. 


present  city  of  Natchez.  This  gave  Natchez  precedence,  as  a 
settlement,  over  every  other  upon  the  Mississippi  south  of  the 
Illinois  country. 

J"  \.D.  1717.]  Early  in  the  following  year,  L'Epinai  arrived 
at  Mobile  as  governor  of  the  province,  with  M.  Hubert,  or- 
donnateur-commissaire.  The  same  arrival  brought  also  fifty 
emigrants  for  the  establishment  of  new  settlements,  and  three 
companies  of  infantry  to  re-enforce  the  garrisons  at  the  differ- 
ent posts. 

Through  the  intrigue  of  England,  the  Spanish  ports  were 
now  all  closed  against  Crozat's  vessels,  and  the  interior  be- 
ing cut  off  from  his  trade,  his  plans  had  all  failed.  He  had 
been  indefatigable  in  urging  his  commercial  operations ;  but 
loss  or  misfortune  lay  in  his  path,  and  none  of  his  plans  pros- 
pered. At  length,  despairing  of  the  ultimate  success  of  his  en- 
terprise in  a  savage  country,  and  having  already  expended 
large  sums  of  money  without  any  profit,  Crozat  determined  to 
abandon  the  whole  scheme.  He  accordingly  petitioned  the 
king  to  revoke  his  charter,  or  to  permit  him  to  surrender  it  to 
the  crown.  The  king  complied  with  his  request,  and  accept- 
ed the  surrender  of  his  charter  in  August,  1717.  The  govern- 
ment of  the  colony  reverted  solely  into  the  hands  of  the  king's 
officers,  and  Crozat  retired  to  France. 

During  the  period  of  Crozat's  charter,  the  colony  continued 
to  languish ;  the  settlements  increased  slowly,  and  were  con- 
fined chiefly  to  the  River  and  Bay  of  Mobile,  and  other  parts 
of  the  coast  westward  from  Biloxi.  Two  small  settlements 
had  been  commenced  on  Red  River,  near  Natchitoches  and 
at  Alexandria.  Although  Crozat  had  introduced  many  set- 
tlers, so  that  the  entire  European  population  had  nearly  doub- 
led their  numbers,  yet  the  whole  number  of  colonists  was  still 
only  seven  hundred  souls,  of  all  ages,  sexes,  and  colors.  Sev- 
eral small  forts  had  been  erected.  Among  them  was  the  one 
on  the  Coosa  River,  called  Fort  Toulouse,  and  the  other  at 
Natchez,  known  as  Fort  Rosalie.  These  were  merely  block- 
houses, inclosed  with  palisades  to  protect  the  inmates  from  sur- 
prise by  the  Indians,  and  to  shelter  the  traders,  with  their  goods 
and  families. 

As  Mr.  Bancroft  observes,  "For  the  advancement  of  the 
colony,  Crozat  accomplished  nothing.  The  only  prosperity 
which  it  possessed  grew  out  of  the  enterprise  of  humble  indi- 


jpt 


21G 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


viduals,  who  had  succeeded  in  establishing  a  little  barter  be- 
tween themselves  and  the  natives,  and  a  petty  trade  with  neigh- 
boring European  settlements.  These  small  sources  of  prosper- 
ity were  cut  off  by  the  profitless  but  fatal  monopoly  of  the  Pa- 
risian merchant.  The  Indians  were  too  powerful  to  be  resist- 
ed by  his  factors.  The  English  gradually  appropriated  the 
trade  with  the  natives,  and  every  Frenchman  in  Louisiana, 
except  his  agents,  fomented  opposition  to  his  privileges.  Cro- 
zat  resigned  his  charter."* 


CHAPTER  VI. 

LOUISIANA    UNDER  THE  "  WESTERN   COMPANY*'  UNTIL  THE   FAILURE 

OF  law's    "MISSISSIPPI    f<CHEME." A.D.   1717  TO  1722. 

Argument. — Enthusiasm  in  France  forcolonizinc;thc  Mississippi. — The  Wostorn  Com- 
pany succeeds  to  tlio  Monopoly  of  Louisiana. — Clmrter  of  the  Company. — Its  i'rivL 
legos,  Powers,  and  Term  of  Existence. — Extravagant  lilxpcetutioiis  of  the  Company. 
— Arrival  of  the  Company's  Officers,  Troops,  and  some  Colonists  at  Moliile. — Bienville 
appointed  Governor. — He  desires  to  extend  Settlements  upon  the  Mississippi. — So- 
lects  the  Site  of  New  Orleans. — Establishes  a  Military  Post  on  it. — Company  refuse 
to  leave  Mobile  as  Headtiuarters. — Mining  Delusion  excludes  Agriculture. — Exten- 
sive Mining  Arrangements  in  1719. — Bienville's  Agricultural  Views  embraced  by  the 
Company. — Dependent  Condition  of  Louisiana. — Several  large  and  small  Colonies 
from  Franco  arrive. — The  Spaniards  establish  Settlements  and  "  Missions"  cnstof  tho 
Rio  del  Norte. — La  Harpe  maintains  his  Post  near  Natchitoches. — Spanish  Encroach- 
ments.— Correspondence  of  th'  Spanish  Commandant,  De  la  Come,  with  La  Harpe, 
in  1719. — Negro  Slavery  introduced  into  Louisiana  by  the  Western  Company. — Dif- 
ferent early  Importations  from  Ouinea. — Value  of  Slaves. — Sources  from  which  tho 
African  Slave-trade  is  supplied. — Changes  in  the  Government  of  Louisiana  in  1719. — 
Superior  Council  organized.  —  Headijuarters  removed  to  Biloxi. —  Emigrants  and 
Troops  an-ivo  in  1720. — War  with  Spain. — Operations  at  Mobile  and  Pensacola. — 
The  latter  captured  and  burned  by  tho  French, — Spanish  Incursions  from  Santa  Fe 
to  the  Missouri  and  Arkansas. — Fort  Orleans  built  on  tho  Missouri. — Plan  of  Defense 
for  tho  U|>per  Mississippi. — Lesueur  occupies  a  Post  on  the  St.  Peter's. — Fort  Char, 
tres  commenced. — Becomes  a  strong  Fortress. — Difficulties  in  Southwestern  Louisi- 
ana.— Bienville  resolves  to  occupy  Texas. — His  "Order"  to  Bernard  La  Harpe. — La 
Haqie's  Occupation  of  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard. — IndiauHostiiitieseast  of  the  Missis- 
sippi.— "  Fort  Conde"  built  on  the  Alabama. — Increase  of  Population  by  diflerent  Ar- 
rivals.— Colonies. — Convicts. — Females  from  the  Houses  of  Correction  in  Paris. — In- 
terdiction of  Convicts  to  Louisiana. — Arrival  of  Emigrants  and  Slaves. — New  Orleans 
becomes  the  Capital  of  the  Province. — Embarrassment  of  the  Western  Company.— 
Sufferings  of  the  Colonies  and  Scarcity  of  Food.— Revolt  of  Troops  at  Fort  Conde.— 
New  Orleans  in  1723. — Picture  of  Law's  celebroted  Scheme. — Its  Character. — False 
Basis. — Credit  System. — Mining  Delusion. — Schemes  for  procrastinating  the  Catastro- 
phe.— Bursting  of  the  "  Bubble.'' — Calamitous  Couse(iuences  of  an  inflated  Currency. 

[A.D.  1717.]     "  The  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  inflamed  the 
imagination  of  France  ;  anticipating  the  future,  the  French  na- 

*  Hist,  of  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  348. 


)UK  II. 

er  be- 
leigli- 
osj)er- 
le  Pa- 
resist- 
j(l  tlie 
isiana, 
Cro- 


A.D.  1717.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSIPSIPPI. 


217 


•AILURE 

2. 


tion  beheld  the  certain  opubnce  of  coming  ages  as  within  their 
immediate  grasp ;  and  John  Law,  who  |u>ssessed  the  entire 
confidence  of  tlie  regent,  obtained  the  whole  control  of  the 
commerce  of  Louisiana  and  Canada."*  Trade,  commerce,  and 
inexhaustible  wealth  were  to  spring  up  in  the  solitudes  of 
America. 

No  sooner  had  Crozat  surrendered  his  charter,  than  others 
were  anxious  and  ready  t(j  enter  the  same  field  of  julventurous 
enterprise.  A  company  was  organized  and  received  the  roy- 
al charter,  under  the  name  of  the  "Western  Company,"  con- 
nected with  Law's  Bank  of  France,  and  sharing  its  privileges. 
This  charter  conferred  upon  the  Western  (,'ompany  much  more 
extensive  powers  and  privileges  than  those  granted  to  M.  Cro- 
zat. The  plan  of  this  comj)any  was  not  unlike  that  of  the  Brit- 
ish "  East  India  Company,"  and  p<jssessed  powers  and  privile- 
ges nearly  etjual.  But  the  plunder  of  a  savage  wilderness  ("ould 
not  yield  such  immense  revenues  as  un  ancient,  wealthy,  and 
efleminate  empire.  Hence  the  French  West  India  Company 
ultimately  failed  in  its  operations. 

The  Western  Company  had  a  legal  existence,  by  the  char- 
ter, of  twenty-five  years.  It  was  vested  with  the  exclusive 
privilege  of  the  entire  commerce  of  Louisiana  and  New  France, 
and  with  authority  to  enforce  its  rights.  It  was  authorized  to 
monopolize  the  trade  of  all  the  colonies  in  the  provinces,  and 
of  all  the  Indian  tribes  within  the  limits  of  that  extensive  re- 
gion, even  to  the  remotest  source  of  every  stream  tributary  in 
any  wise  to  the  Mississippi  and  Mobile  Rivers ;  to  make  treat- 
ies with  the  Indian  tribes ;  to  declare  and  prosecute  war  against 
them  in  defense  of  the  colony  ;  to  grant  lands,  to  erect  forts,  to 
levy  troops,  to  raise  recruits,  and  to  open  and  work  all  mines 
of  precious  metals  or  stones  which  might  be  discovered  in  the 
province.  It  was  permitted  and  authorized  to  nominate  and 
present  men  for  the  otfice  of  governor,  and  for  commanders  of 
the  troops,  and  to  commission  the  latter,  subject  to  the  king's 
approval ;  to  remove  inferior  judges  and  civil  officers  ;  to  build 
and  equip  ships  of  war,  and  to  cast  cannon.  The  king  also 
granted  for  the  use  of  the  company  all  the  forts,  magazines, 
guns,  ammunition,  and  vessels  pertaining  to  the  province. f 

Among  the  obligations  imposed  upon  the  company  was  the 
stipulation  to  introduce  into  the  province  of  Louisiana,  within 

*  Bancroft's  U.  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  349.  t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  200-202. 


218 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  If. 


the  period  of  their  chartered  privileges,  six  thousand  white  per- 
sons and  three  thousand  negro  slaves,  and  to  protect  the  set- 
tlements against  Indian  hostilities. 

It  was  vainly  hoped,  on  the  part  of  France,  that  the  Western 
Company  would  exert  a  powerful  influence  in  colonizing  the 
vast  regions  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  while  the  company 
looked  forward  to  certain  inexhaustible  sources  of  wealth :  but 
what  are  exclusive  privileges  in  a  savage  wilderness  ?  Where 
there  are  few  and  destitute  settlements,  of  what  value  are  the 
spoils  ? 

[A.D.  1718.]  In  the  following  spring,  early,  three  of  the 
company's  ships  arrived  in  the  port  of  Mobile,  having  on  board 
M.  Boisbriant,  the  king's  lieutenant  for  Louisiana,  hearing  the 
king's  commission  to  M.  Bienville  as  governor  of  the  province, 
M.  Hubert,  "  director-general"  of  the  company's  affairs,  be- 
sides three  companies  of  infantry,  and  sixty-nine  colonists. 
Such  was  the  first  step  of  the  company  to  subdue  the  great 
Valley  of  the  Mississippi.* 

Bienville  again  entered  upon  his  duties  as  governor  and 
lieutenant-general  of  the  province.  He  still  deemed  it  expe- 
dient to  remove  the  headquarters  of  the  colonial  government 
from  the  sterile  regions  near  Mobile  Bay,  and  to  establish  it 
upon  the  banks  of  the  St.  Louis  or  Mississippi  River.  Upon 
the  sterile  lands  around  Mobile  Bay,  and  the  Bays  of  St.  Louis 
and  Biloxi,  no  agricultural  colony  could  prosper,  and  without 
agriculture  the  province  could  not  be  sustained.  Upon  the 
fertile  alluvions,  and  the  rich  hills  bordering  on  the  Mississippi 
and  its  tributaries,  an  agricultural  community  might  succeed, 
and  supply  the  whole  colony  with  all  the  products  necessary 
to  sustain  life,  and  yield  a  competence  to  the  emigrating  colo- 
nies. He  accordingly  resolved  to  encourage  the  extension  of 
settlements  upon  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  itself. 

In  view  of  this  object,  he  selected  a  site  for  a  town,  and 
placed  fifty  men  to  clear  oflf  the  grounds,  as  the  location  of  the 
future  capital  of  the  province,  and  to  erect  barracks  for  the 
troops.  The  ground  selected  was  that  which  is  now  covered 
by  the  lower  portion,  or  French  part,  of  the  present  city  of 
New  Orleans ;  a  name  given  by  Bienville  in  honor  of  the  dis- 
solute but  generous  regent  of  France,  and  a  name  which  it 
retains  to  this  day.     But  M.  Hubert,  the  director-general  of 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol  i.,  p.  202. 


A.D.  1718.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


210 


the  company,  refused  to  remove  the  offices  and  the  warehouse 
of  the  company  from  Mobile.  Of  course,  Bienville's  new  set- 
tlement remained  but  little  more  than  a  small  military  post,  re- 
mote from  the  settlements.  Next  spring  the  river  overflowed 
its  banks,  the  new  settlement  was  completely  inundated,  and 
the  site  seemed  to  present  an  uncertain  location  for  a  city. 
The  troops  were  stationed  again  at  Mobile ;  yet,  subsequently, 
a  small  military  post  was  I'enewed  at  New  Orleans,  although 
for  three  years  Bienville's  headquarters  remained  at  Mobile. 
M.  Hubert  could  not  agree  that  the  commercial  depot  of  the 
company  should  be  removed  from  a  sea-port  which  afforded  a 
direct  intercourse  with  the  West  Indies,  whence  they  could 
derive  the  earliest  intelligence  from  France.  M.  Hubert  con- 
sidered the  site  of  New  Orleans  an  inland  point,  remote  from 
maritime  advantages,  and  subject  to  frequent  inundations,  which 
must  render  it  unhealthy.  Agriculture  was  not  the  object  of 
the  company,  so  much  as  trade  and  the  rich  mines  supposed  to 
exist  in  the  interior. 

The  delusion  which  dreamed  of  rich  mines  of  silver  and  gold 
in  Louisiana  still  haunted  the  minds  of  the  company  and  its 
agents.  The  most  influential  men  in  the  province  were  eager 
to  encourage  the  search  for  the  precious  metals.  Notwith- 
standing the  failure  of  Crozat,  the  company  were  willing  to 
believe  that  the  failure  resulted  more  from  unskillful  assayers 
than  from  absence  of  gold.  To  remedy  this  defect,  a  numer- 
ous company  of  miners  and  assayers,  not  less  than  two  hun- 
dred in  number,  was  to  be  sent  to  Upper  Louisiana,  under  the 
direction  of  Francis  Renault,  "  director-general  of  the  mines  of 
Louisiana."  Every  agent  and  every  trader  was  required  care- 
fully to  observe  and  report  the  presence  of  any  rich  ores  which 
might  be  discovered  in  their  distant  rambles.  The  inexhaust- 
ible soil  was  neglected  as  a  too  tardy  source  of  wealth.* 

Yet  Bienville,  confident  that  the  prosperity  of  the  colony  de- 
pended upon  its  agricultural  resources,  and  knowing  that  noth- 
ing was  to  be  expected  by  the  company  from  free  trade  with 
the  Mexican  provinces  or  Florida,  persisted  in  his  efforts  to 
transfer  the  colonists  to  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi.  The 
disastrous  experiment  of  M.  Crozat  was  sufficient  evidence  of 
this  fact ;  and  what  was  to  be  gained  by  the  exclusive  com- 
merce and  trade  of  a  colony  which  consisted  of  only  a  few 

*  Martin's  Louiaiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  310-216. 


220 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


hundred  indigent,  lazy  people,  scattered  thinly  over  a  savage 
wilderness  ?    Such  was  the  reasoning  of  Bienville. 

The  attainment  of  riches  from  the  mines  of  precious  metals 
in  Upper  Louisiana  was  equally  preposterous-  Mines  there 
were,  of  purest  lead,  of  iron,  of  copper,  and  other  metals ;  but 
not  of  gold  or  silver.  At  length  the  directory  concurred  with 
Bienville,  that,  after  the  fur  trade  with  the  Indians,  the  next 
most  desirable  source  of  revenue  to  the  company  would  spring 
from  a  densely  settled  country  of  civilized  people.  It  became, 
therefore,  an  object  of  primary  importance  to  encourage  the 
emigration  of  industrious  and  useful  citizens  from  France,  who 
should  establish  regular  agricultural  settlements  upon  the  fer- 
tile lands  which  spread  through  the  alluvions  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, its  large  tributaries  and  bayous.  To  accomplish  this 
object,  large  grants  of  land  were  made  to  influential  and  enter- 
prising men,  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  new  colonies  upon 
the  Mississippi.  The  largest  grants  were  located  upon  the 
banks  of  the  river,  within  three  hundred  miles  above  New  Or- 
leans ;  others  were  located  upon  Red  River,  upon  the  Washita, 
upon  the  Yazoo,  and  upon  the  Arkansas.  The  grant  on  the 
Arkansas  was  made  to  the  noted  John  Law  himself,  the  Scotch 
financier,  who  was  now  at  the  head  of  the  Bank  of  France,  and 
controlled  the  financial  operations  of  the  company  as  well  as 
of  France.  Law  stipulated  to  colonize  the  Arkansas  with  fif- 
teen hundred  German  emigrants  from  Provence,  in  France, 
and  to  keep  up  a  sufficient  military  force  for  their  protection 
against  Indian  hostility.  Other  grants  were  upon  similar  con- 
ditions ;  the  number  of  emigrants  to  be  furnished  were  pro- 
portioned to  the  extent  of  the  grant.*  A  change  in  the  condi- 
tion of  the  colony  was  about  to  be  introduced  by  the  new  poli- 
cy which  had  been  adopted :  and  preparations  were  active  in 
France,  by  the  different  grantees,  in  collecting  their  emigrants 
who  were  willing  to  visit  the  great  Valley  of  the  Mississippi. 

Although,  up  to  this  time,  agriculture  had  been  entirely  neg- 

*  Among  the  grants  made  for  colonies  was  one  to  John  Law,  of  twelve  miles  square, 
upon  the  Arkansas;  one  on  the  Yazoo  to  Leblanc  and  others;  one  to  M.  Hubert  and 
((then,  merchants  of  St.  Malvcs;  one  to  Bernard  de  la  Harpe,  above  Natchitoches; 
one  to  De  Meuse,  at  Point  Coupee ;  one  to  St.  Reine,  at  the  Tunicas ;  one  to  Diroa 
D'Artaguette,  at  Baton  Rouge ;  one  to  Paris  Duvemay,  at  Bayou  Manchac,  on  the  west 
side  of  the  river;  one  to  Du  Mays,  at  Tchoupitoulos ;  one  to  the  Marquis  d'Anconis; 
one  to  the  Marquis  d'Artagnac,  at  Cannes  Brulce  ;  one  to  De  la  Housaie  and  La 
Houpe,  on  the  opposite  side ;  one  to  Madame  de  Mcziferes ;  one  to  Madame  de  Chau- 
monot,  at  Paacagoula. — See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  207. 


A.D.   1718.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MI98I38IPPI. 


221 


lectecl  in  Lower  Louisiana,  yet  upon  the  Illinois  and  Wabash 
agricultural  products  had  become  staples  of  a  valuable  trade. 
In  the  South,  although  blessed  with  a  soil  unsurpassed  in  fer- 
tility, and  a  climate  inferior  to  none  in  the  world  for  agri- 
cultural productions,  the  colonists  had  been  dependent  on 
France,  or  upon  the  caprice  of  chance  and  circumstances,  for 
all  their  supplies.  Instead  of  locating  themselves  upon  the 
fertile  hills  above  Bayou  Manchac,  or  upon  the  deep  alluvions 
of  the  river,  they  had  all  disembarked  upon  the  crystalline 
sands  of  Dauphin  Island,  where  they  were  often  reduced  to  a 
state  of  want  and  suffering  by  any  accidental  interruption  in 
the  arrival  of  supplies  expected  from  France. 

Whatever  the  mines  of  Upper  Louisiana  might  ultimately 
yield,  it  had  become  evident  that  the  true  wealth  of  Louisiana 
had  been  entirely  neglected.  This  neglect  had  several  times 
reduced  the  infant  colony  to  the  verge  of  destruction.  Twenty 
years  had  now  elapsed  since  the  first  settlement  of  Louisiana 
by  Iberville,  and  yet  the  people  were  dependent  upon  France 
for  all  their  supplies,  except  such  as  were  derived  fr.)m  the 
chase  or  the  prolific  waters,  unless  supplied  from  the  precari- 
ous bounty  of  the  savages.  Thrice  had  the  colony  been  on 
the  verge  of  famine ;  and  fortune,  not  their  own  enterprise,  res- 
cued them  from  starvation. 

Meantime  the  Spaniards  were  advancing  from  Mexico  to 
the  east  side  of  the  Rio  del  Norte,  and  were  establishing  their 
claims  to  the  province  of  Texas  by  actual  occupation.  During 
the  last  two  years,  they  had  established  several  "  missions,"  or 
fortified  settlements,  in  Western  Texas ;  and  others  were  con- 
templated as  far  east  as  the  Adaes,  near  Natchitoches,  and 
upon  the  Delta  of  Red  River.  Advancing  from  the  "  Mission 
of  St.  John  Baptist,"  on  the  Del  Norte,  they  had  erected  the 
mission  of  San  Antonio  de  Bexar,  on  the  northeast  side  of  the 
San  Antonio  River.  Advancing  still  further,  they  erected  the 
"  Mission  of  La  Bahia,"  on  the  San  Antonio  River,  not  thirty 
miles  north  of  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  which  they  designated 
Espiritu  Santo,  and  near  the  present  town  of  Goliad.  These 
towns  are  the  oldest  Spanish  settlements  in  Texas,  and  were 
occupied  as  early  as  the  year  1716.  During  the  Spanish  do- 
minion over  Louisiana,  they  became  places  of  great  import- 
ance. Goliad,  as  its  name  implies,  was  "  the  place  of  strength." 
One  hundred  vears  after  its  first  settlement, "  it  contained  sev 


222 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  II. 


eral  thousand  inhabitants,"  and,  situated  upon  a  high,  rocky 
bluff,  upon  the  bank  of  the  San  Antonio  River,  "  its  fortifica- 
tions, which  were  built  almost  entirely  of  stone"  by  the  Span- 
iards, were  deemed  impregnable. 

Soon  after  the  establishment  of  these  posts,  the  Spaniards 
advanced  to  Nacogdoches,  upon  the  waters  of  the  Angelina,  a 
tributary  of  the  Nechcs.  Having  established  a  "  mission"  at 
this  point  also,  they  advanced  eastward  to  the  Adaes,  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  present  town  of  Natchitoches.  Here  they  es- 
tablished the  "Mission  of  San  Miguel  de  Linarez,"  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Adaiis,  and  the  settlement  is  still  commemorated 
in  the  adjacent  lake,  now  known  as  "  Spanish  Lake."* 

Such  were  the  advances  of  the  Spaniards  toward  the  Mis- 
sissippi as  early  as  the  years  1716  and  1718. 

Among  the  most  noted  "missions"  of  Western  Texas,  in  sub- 
sequent years,  were  those  of  the  Alamo,  in  Bexar ;  San  Jose 
and  Conception,  situated  a  few  miles  below  the  city  of  San 
Antonio  ;  and  Espiritu  Santo,  near  Goliad. 

The  French  kept  a  jealous  eye  toward  the  approaches  of 
the  Spaniards  from  Mexico ;  but  such  was  the  feeble  condition 
of  the  colonies  in  Louisiana,  that  the  country  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi had  not  been  occupied  until  the  year  1718,  when  emi- 
grants began  to  arrive  for  that  portion  of  the  province. 

[A.D.  1710.]  During  the  past  year,  Bernard  de  la  Harpc 
had  received  a  grant  for  a  colony  on  Red  River,  near  the 
present  site  of  Natchitoches.  Late  in  the  autumn  he  arrived 
with  a  colony  of  sixty  settlers,  and  near  the  close  of  Decem- 
ber reached  the  point  of  his  location.  He  had  orders  to  oc- 
cupy the  country  with  a  military  post,  and  to  explore  it  west- 
ward. Having  selected  his  situation,  in  January  he  ^  an 
to  make  a  permanent  settlement,  and  to  construct  a  military 
post  on  the  present  site  of  Natchitoches.     From  this  point, 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  204-209.  In  1718,  the  principal  eastern  settlement 
of  Mexico  was  the  Presidio  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  six  miles  west  of  the  Rio  del 
Norte.  The  same  year  settlements  and  missions  were  extended  into  the  western 
portion  of  Louisiana,  or  what  was  known  to  the  Spaniards  as  the  province  of  "  Texas.'' 
A  mission  was  established  among  the  Adacs  Indians,  within  twenty  miles  of  the 
Natchitoches  tribe.  This  was  the  mission  of  San  Miguel  de  Linarez.  The  following 
year,  1719,  two  friars,  accompanied  by  a  few  soldiers,  joined  the  miasion  among  the 
Adaes,  to  catechise  them,  among  whom  several  Frenchmen  had  settled.  At  the  same 
time,  tlie  Spaniards  had  established  several  missions  among  the  Aasinais  Indians,  re- 
siding about  thirty  miles  east  of  Nacogdoches,  or  nearly  one  hundred  and  forty  miles 
west  of  Red  River,  and  in  the  region  designated  by  them  New  Philippine.— See  Stod- 
dart,  p.  142.    Also  Moore's  Texas,  ed.  1840,  p.  74. 


A.D.    1719.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


223 


subsequently,  during  the  summer,  ho  explored  the  country  west- 
ward, far  into  the  province  of  Texas,  and  lost  no  oi)[)ortunity 
of  conciliating  the  Western  tribes,  and  of  o[>cning  with  them 
a  friendly  intercourse  by  means  of  trading-posts  established 
among  them. 

Early  in  the  spring,  other  colonies  began  to  arrive  for  some 
of  the  principal  grants.  Among  these,  the  first  large  colony 
was  that  of  M.  Dubuisson,  who  arrived  in  April  at  Mobile, 
vwith  sixty  families,  to  settle  a  grant  made  to  Paris  Duvernay, 
on  the  right  bank,  or  west  side,  of  the  Mississippi,  opposite  the 
Bayou  Manchac,  or  Iberville.  In  June  one  of  the  company's 
vessels  arrived,  with  upward  of  eight  hundred  emigrants,  ior 
different  grants  and  settlements.  These  proceeded  from  the 
harbor  of  Dauphin  Island,  by  way  of  the  Bay  of  St.  Louis, 
through  Lakes  Pontchartrain  and  Maurepas,  to  the  Mississip- 
pi, as  the  others  had  done,  to  seek  their  respective  locations. 
Among  them  were  seventy  emigrants  for  the  settlement  of  a 
grant  made  to  M.  de  la  Housaie,  on  the  Mississippi,  opposite 
to  the  Cannes  Brul6e  Bayou ;  also,  seventy  settlers  for  a 
grant  made  to  M.  de  la  Houpe,  adjoining  the  last.  Among 
them  were  also  twelve  small  colonies,  of  fifteen  persons  each, 
for  the  settlement  of  twelve  other  small  grants ;  also  thirty 
young  men,  to  serve  as  clerks  at  the  different  offices  and  de- 
pots of  the  company.  This  vessel  also  contained  a  number  of 
convicts  from  Paris,  whose  sentence  had  been  commuted  to 
transportation. 

In  the  autumn,  sixty  emigrants  arrived  at  Mobile,  for  the 
settlement  of  M.  de  la  Harpe  on  Red  River.  About  the 
same  time,  M.  Brizart  arrived,  with  a  colony  for  a  settlement 
upon  the  Yazoo  River,  where  Fort  St.  Peter  was  afterward 
built.  Besides  those  who  came  as  colonists  for  particular 
grants,  there  were,  from  time  to  time,  many  arrivals  of  indi- 
viduals and  families  from  France,  who  were  at  liberty  to 
choose  their  own  locations  and  settle  at  pleasure.  Acces- 
sions of  this  kind  continued  gradually  to  increase  the  numbers 
of  the  several  colonies. 

Among  the  valuable  emigrants  of  this  year,  we  must  not 
omit  a  colony  of  miners,  two  hundred  in  number,  under  the 
direction  of  Philip  Francis  Renault,  son  of  Philip  Renault,  a  no- 
ted iron-founder  at  Consobre,  near  Maubeuge,  in  France.  Re- 
nault, as  "  director-general  of  the  mines"  under  the  Western 


224 


iiisTtmY  or  THE 


[OOOK  II. 


Company,  with  his  colony,  proceeded  to  the  lUinois  country, 
where  he  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  otnce.  As  the  mining 
interest  never  pros|)ered,  many  of  these,  subseciuentiy,  were 
incorporated  with  the  villagers  and  agriculturists  of  the  Illi- 
nois (Country.  Others  engaged  in  mining  operations  on  the 
east  and  west  banks,  far  above  the  Wisconsin  River. 

The  jealousy  of  Spain  kept  a  watchful  eye  upon  the  advance 
of  the  French  settlements  west  of  the  Mississippi.  On  the  east, 
the  line  between  Louisiana  and  Florida  had  been  mutuallv  ar- 
ranged, and  the  Pcrdido  was  the  dividing  stream ;  but  on  ihe 
west  no  such  arrangement  had  been  made.  While  France 
claimed  westward  as  far  as  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  west  of 
the  Colorado  River,  Spain  claimed  the  territory  eastward, 
from  Mexico  nearly  to  the  Mississippi  itself.  The  Spanish 
authorities  had  advanced  their  settlements,  as  before  observed, 
from  Texas  as  far  east  as  the  village  of  Adai's,  on  the  Bayou 
Adacis,  near  "  Spanish  Lake,"  and  within  nine  miles  of  Natch- 
itoches, where  La  Harpe  had  erected  a  military  post,  and  was 
now  establishing  a  regular  French  colony. 

Such  was  the  state  of  claims  and  boundaries  between  the 
French  province  of  Louisiana  and  the  Spanish  province  of 
Texas  in  January,  1719,  when  La  Ilarpe  arrived  at  Natchi- 
toches. Having  ascertained  that  the  Spanish  commandant  of 
Texas,  Don  Martin  de  la  Come,  had  established  several  mis- 
sions in  Western  Louisiana,  forming  a  chain  of  settlements 
from  Nacogdoches  to  the  Adaes,  and  was  also  preparing  to 
form  a  settlement  on  Red  River,  at  the  Caddo  village,  La 
Harpe  determined  to  act  with  promptness  and  decision.  He 
proceeded,  early  in  February,  to  explore  and  occupy  the  river 
and  country  above  the  Spanish  settlements.  On  the  21st  of 
April,  with  a  detachment  of  troops,  he  had  proceeded  as  fai 
as  the  Yatassee  village,  one  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  by  the 
river  above  Natchitoches.  Here  he  established  a  trading-post 
for  the  company,  and  on  the  27th  he  laid  the  foundation  of  a 
fort  at  the  Natsoo  village.*  This  post  was  about  two  hundred 
miles  above  the  head  of  the  Great  Raft,  and  near  the  parallel 
of  33'  30'  north  latitude,  and  probably  not  far  from  the  mouth 
of  North  Little  River,  in  the  southern  angle  of  the  present 
county  of  Hempstead,  in  the  State  of  Arkansas. 

The  Spanish  commandant  of  Texas  remonstrated  against 

"  Darb}-'6  Louisiana,  p.  32.    Sec,  nUo,  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  14'2-14r>. 


A.D.  1710.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MldDIM^im. 


this  intrusion  upon  the  territory  of  his  province;  and  in  June 
La  Iliirpe  received  from  Don  de  la  Corne  the  following  laconic 
communication,  requiring  him  to  abandon  the  country,  which 
was  claimed  as  a  part  of  the  Spanish  province  of  Texns,  viz.: 
"Monsieur, — I  am  very  sensible  of  the  politeness  that  M.  de 
Bienville  and  yourself  have  had  the  goodness  to  show  me. 
The  order  I  have  received  from  the  king,  my  master,  is,  to 
maintain  a  good  understanding  with  the  French  of  Louisiana. 
My  own  inclinations  lead  mc  equally  to  aflbrd  them  all  the 
services  that  depend  upon  me ;  but  I  am  compelled  to  say,  that 
your  arrival  at  the  Nassonite  village  surprises  me  very  much. 
Your  governor  could  not  have  been  ignorant  that  the  post  you 
occupy  belongs  to  my  government,  and  that  oil  the  lands  west 
of  the  Nassonites  depend  upon  New  Mexico.  I  ).'jconunend 
you  to  give  advice  of  th!-:  to  M.  Bitui,"!ie,  or  V!  ;,  will  force 
me  to  oblige  you  to  abandon  brjis  fh  »f  »hc  i  rench  have  no 
right  to  occupy.  I  have  the  JioriOi  to  be,  sir, 

**  Ob  la  Corne. 

"Trinity  River,  May  80,  1719." 

To  which  the  gallant  La  Horyje  rctumod  the  f')!! .  vlng  an- 
swer, viz. : 

"Monsieur, — The  order  of  his  Catholic  a;;wsty,  t<>  nuiintain 
a  good  understanding  with  the  French  >'  L'<;  isinr.a,  nwl  iho 
kind  intentions  you  have  yourself  expressed  toward  them, 
accord  but  little  with  your  proceedings.  Pernat  ine  to  inform 
you  that  M.  de  Bienville  is  perfectly  informed  of  the  iimits  of 
his  government,  and  is  very  certain  thiit  tbn  posi  of  Nnssouite 
depends  not  upon  the  dominions  of 'me  Catholic  r/iajesty.  He 
knows,  also,  that  the  province  of  liastc^kas,  of  whi/h  you  sny 
you  are  governor,  is  a  part  of  Louisiana.  M.  de  la  Sal!?  to  >k 
possession  in  1685,  in  the  name  of  his  most  Christian  'njjes'y ; 
and  since  the  above  epoch,  possession  has  been  renew  oi  from 
time  to  time. 

"  Respecting  the  post  of  Ncsjor.ito,  I  (an  not  co'nprehend  by 
what  right  you  pretend  that  it  il^rms  ii  par-,  of  New  Mexico. 
I  beg  leave  to  represent  Ij  y.-n,  that  Don  Antoine  du  Miroir, 
who  discovered  New  Y cjxico  iii  1083,  never  penetrated  east 
of  that  province  or  the  Rio  Bravo.  It  was  the  French  who 
first  mpre  alliances  with  the  savage  tribes  in  this  region  ;  and 
it  is  natural  to  conclude  that  a  river  which  flows  into  the  Mis- 
sissippi, and  the  lands  it  waters,  belong  to  the  king,  my  master. 

Vol.  L— P 


826 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


"  If  you  will  do  me  the  pleasure  to  come  into  this  quarter,  I 
will  convince  you  that  I  hold  a  post  which  I  know  how  to  de- 
fend. I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir, 

"  De  la  Habpe.* 

"Nawonito,  July  8, 1719." 

The  French  continued  to  hold  the  country  in  question,  not- 
withstanding all  the  remonstrances  of  the  Spaniards,  and  nev- 
er ceased  to  claim  the  jurisdiction  westward  to  the  Rio  del 
Norte,  up  to  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to  Spain  in  1762.  For 
several  years,  the  Spanish  post  and  settlement  on  the  Trinity 
was  maintained ;  but  the  settlement  of  the  Adaes,  near  the 
French  post  of  Natchitoches,  was  abandoned.  Each  com- 
mandant at  their  respective  posts,  on  Red  River  and  on  the 
Trinity,  resolved  to  permit  the  other  quietly  to  occupy  his 
post,  and  to  secure  each  the  friendship  and  alliance  of  the 
neighboring  tribes,  while  war  was  ravaging  the  seaboard  of 
Florida  and  Louisiana. 

Experiments  had  shown  that  the  fertile  soil  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, as  well  as  the  climate,  were  well  adapted  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  tobacco,  rice,  and  indigo.  Bilt  laborers  were  few,  and 
the  climate  sickly  to  European  emigrants.  The  European 
constitution  was  ill  adapted  to  endure  the  labors  of  the  field 
during  the  long  summers  and  under  the  burning  suns  of  Loui- 
siana, and  to  withstand  the  chilling  dews  and  fogs  of  night.  In 
the  attempt  many  had  sickened  and  died,  and  the  survivors 
deemed  life  and  health  more  precious  than  the  redundant  wealth 
of  the  fields.f 

Negroes  from  Africa  had  been  successfully  employed  in  the 
fields  and  in  the  low  grounds  of  Virginia  and  Carolina,  as  well 
as  in  the  Islands  of  Cuba  and  Hispaniola,  under  a  tropical  sun.  J 
Experience  had  proved  that,  by  nature,  they  were  well  adapted 
to  withstand  such  a  climate  as  that  of  Louisiana.  Under  these 
considerations,  the  company  resolved  to  introduce  African  ne- 
groes to  cultivate  the  fields,  and  to  open  plantations  among  the 
dense  undergrowth  and  heavy  forests  of  the  Mississippi.  Two 
ships  were  accordingly  dispatched  to  the  coast  of  Africa  for  a 

*  See  Darby's  LouUiana,  p.  33,  34.  The  coiTe8i>ondence  between  the  French  and 
Spanish  commandants  is  placed  by  Martin  among  the  occnrreuces  of  1730.  See  Mar- 
tin's Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  219-233.  This,  however,  is  an  error.  The  inquiring  reader 
may  consult  the  "  American  State  Papers,"  Boston  edition  of  1819,  vol.  xii.,  p.  106, 107, 
for  the  elaborate  discussion  of  the  Louisiana  boundaries,  by  Don  Onis  and  John  Q. 
Adams.  t  Darby's  Louisiana,  p.  23.  t  Martiu'i  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  310. 


A.D.  1720.]  VALLEY   OF  THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


227 


in  the 
well 

sun.J 
idapted 
sr  these 


■cnch  nnd 
See  Mar- 
ng  reader 
106, 107, 
John  Q. 
p.  210. 


cargo  of  slaves.  These  vessels  made  a  prosperous  voyage, 
and  late  in  autumn  they  returned  with  five  hundred  African 
negroes,  in  company  with  three  vessels  of  war.  They  disem- 
barked at  Pensacola,  which  had  been  captured  from  the  Span- 
iards by  the  French  troops  of  Louisiana  soon  after  the  irrup- 
tion of  hostilities. 

With  a  portion  of  the  slaves  which  were  sent  to  New  Or- 
leans the  directors  of  the  company  opened  a  large  plantation 
on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  nearly  opposite  the  post  at  New 
Orleans.  This  was  done  as  an  example  to  others,  and  to  test 
the  advantages  which  were  to  be  derived  from  this  species  of 
labor.  This  was  the  first  extensive  slave  plantation  in  Louisi- 
ana, owned,  too,  by  a  company  with  chartered  privileges.  Tlie 
remainder  of  the  cargo  was  sold  to  emigrants  and  opulent  set- 
tlers in  different  parts  of  the  province,  but  chiefly  for  the  agri- 
cultural settlements  on  the  Lower  Mississippi. 

Such  was  the  first  importation  of  African  slaves  into  Louisi- 
ana as  a  cargo  from  Guinea ;  and  for  several  years  the  im- 
portation of  negroes  was  one  of  the  most  profitable  monopolies 
of  the  company.  During  Crozat's  monopoly  but  few  slaves 
had  been  introduced,  and  those  by  private  persons  as  domestic 
property.  Although  Crozat's  charter  conferred  the  privilege 
of  introducing  "  one  ship-load  of  negroes  annually,"  it  does  not 
appear  that  he  availed  himself  of  the  privilege. 

[A.D.  1720-1722.]  The  second  cargo  of  slaves  introduced 
into  Louisiana  consisted  of  five  hundred  African  negroes,  which 
arrived  in  the  company's  ships  at  Mobile  during  the  summer 
of  1720.  The  third  cargo,  consisting  also  of  five  hundred  Af- 
ricans, arrived  at  Mobile  on  the  first  of  April,  1721.*  The 
fourth  cargo  of  slaves  consisted  of  two  hundred  and  ninety  Af- 
rican negroes  on  board  a  Guineaman,  which  arrived  at  Mobile 
in  the  spring  of  1722.  The  fifth  cargo  of  slaves  arrived  in  an- 
other Guineaman  in  August  following,  and  consisted  of  three 
hundred  African  negroes. 

During  the  existence  of  the  company,  for  several  years  after- 
ward, their  agents  continued  to  supply  the  demand  for  slaves 
in  the  agricultural  interest  of  Louisiana  from  the  same  source, 
the  number  varying  from  one  to  three  hundred  annually.  The 
common  price  for  a  good  negro  man  was  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars,  or  about  six  hundred  livres.     For  a  healthy 

*  Martm'i  Louiiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  934. 


'' 

h 


228 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


woman,  the  ordinary  price  was  about  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  doUars,  or  five  hundred  livres  ;*  the  Hvre  being  equal  to 
twenty-five  cents  Federal  money.  Such  was  the  origin  of 
African  slavery  in  Louisiana. 

While  France  and  Spain,  during  the  next  half  century,  were 
endeavoring  to  supply  their  American  colonies  with  negro 
slaves  as  laborers  on  their  plantations,  England,  true  to  her 
system  of  monopolies,  was  contending  for  the  n  onopoly  of  the 
slave-trade  in  the  supply,  not  only  of  her  own  provinces,  but 
also  those  of  France  and  Spain.  To  this  policy  of  England, 
encouraged  by  British  legislation,  and  fostered  by  royal  favor, 
posterity  owes  the  fact  that  one  sixth  of  the  population  of  the 
United  States,  a  moiety  of  those  who  now  dwell  in  the  states 
and  territories  nearest  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  are  descendants  of 
Africans. 

The  colored  men  imported  into  the  American  colonies  were 
sought  all  along  the  African  coast,  for  thirty  degrees  together, 
from  Capo  Blanco  to  Loango  St.  Paul's,  from  the  great  Desert 
of  Sahara  to  the  kingdom  of  Angola,  or,  perhaps,  even  to  the 
borders  of  the  land  of  the  Caflres.  They  were  chiefly  gather- 
ed from  gangs  that  were  marched  from  the  far  interior,  so  that 
the  freight  of  a  single  ship  might  be  composed  of  persons  of 
different  languages,  and  of  nations  altogether  strange  to  each 
other.  Nor  was  there  uniformity  of  complexion :  of  those 
brought  to  our  country,  some  were  from  tribes  of  which  the 
skin  was  a  tawny-yellow ;  others  varied,  not  only  in  the  hues 
of  the  skin,  but  in  the  diversities  of  features  which  abound  in 
Africa  among  the  varieties  of  the  negro  race.f 

"  The  purchases  in  Africa  were  made  in  part  of  convicts 
punished  with  slavery,  or  mulcted  in  a  fine,  which  was  dis- 
charged by  the  proceeds  of  their  sale  ;  of  debtors  sold,  though 
but  rarely,  into  foreign  bondage ;  of  children  sold  by  their 
parents ;  of  kidnapped  villagers ;  of  captives  taken  in  war. 
Hence  the  sea-coast  and  the  confines  of  hostile  nations  were 
laid  waste.  But  the  chief  source  of  supply  was  frt)ni  swarms 
of  those  born  in  a  state  of  slavery  ;  for  the  despotisms,  the  su- 
perstitions, and  the  usages  of  Africa  had  multiplied  bondage." 

"  In  the  upper  countries,  on  the  Senegal  and  Gambia,  three 
fourths  of  the  inhabitants  were  not  free  ;  and  the  slave's  mas- 
ter was  absolute  lord  of  the  slave's  children."     Hence  the 


Martin's  Louitiaiia,  voL  i.,  p.  817. 


t  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  403. 


A.D.  1720.] 


VALLEY    OF  THE    MISBtSSIPn. 


220 


European  slave-trader  only  converted  their  bondage  into  a 
servitude  among  Christians  instead  of  pagans  and  Mohamme- 
dans. "  In  the  healthy  and  fertile  uplands  of  Western  Africa, 
under  a  tropical  sun,  the  reproductive  power  of  the  prolific 
race,  combined  with  the  imperfect  development  of  its  moral 
faculties,  gave  to  human  life  in  the  eye  of  man  himself  an  in- 
ferior value.  Humanity  ((id  not  respect  itself  in  any  of  \U 
forms  in  the  individual,  in  the  family,  or  in  the  nation."* 

Among'  the  changes  ordered  by  the  directory  of  the  com- 
pany was  the  removal  of  the  headcjuarters  of  the  command- 
ant-general to  Biloxi  Bay,  now  known  as  New  Biloxi.  Ac- 
cordingly, in  December  following,  a  detachment  of  troops  was 
sent  to  build,  a  principal  d6p6t,  erect  barracks,  and  dwellings 
for  the  ollicers  and  commandant-general. 

Another  change  introduced  into  the  government  of  Louisi- 
ana this  year  was  the  institution  of  a  ''♦Sujjerior  Council," 
agreeably  to  an  edict  of  the  king  issued  in  September.  The 
Council  at  headquarters  had  heretofore  been  the  solo  tribunal 
in  the  colony  for  the  adjudication  of  civil  and  criminal  cases. 
Now  the  increase  of  population  and  the  extension  of  settlements 
recjuired  judicial  tribunals  in  various  portions  of  the  province. 
The  directors  of  the  company,  or  its  agents,  with  two  of  the 
most  notable  inhabitants  of  the  vicinity^  were  constituted  in- 
ferior courts  in'  remote  parts  of  the  province  for  all  civil  cases. 
The  same,  with  four  of  the  principal  inhabitants,  might  act  in 
criminal  cases,  subject  to  an  appeal  to  the  Superior  Council.f 

The  Superior  Council  was  composed  of  the  commandant- 
general,  the  king's  two  lieutenants,  a  senior  counselor,  three 
other  counselors,  the  attorney-general,  and  a  clerk,  associated 
with  such  of  the  company's  directors  as  might  be  in  the  prov- 
ince. The  quorum  was  fixed  at  three  members  in  civil,  and 
five  in  criminal  cases.  All  cases,  original  as  well  as  appellate, 
as  the  last  resort,  were  acted  upon,  and  judgments  given  with- 
out costs  to  the  parties  litigant.;};  Such  was  one  of  the  advan- 
tages enjoyed  under  the  royal  government  of  France  and 
Spain. 

[A.D.  1720.]  Early  in  February,  1720,  five  hundred  and 
eighty-two  emigrants  arrived  at  Mobile  for  the  settlements  in 
different  portions  of  Louisiana.  Among  these  were  many 
females  taken  from  the  hospital-general  of  Paris.     They  served 


! 


I 

I 


*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  403. 


t  Mnrtin,  vul.  i.,  p.  315,  216. 


t  Idem,  p.  215. 


330 


HISTOKY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


to  augment  the  population  of  the  colony,  and  might  ultimately 
contribute  largely  to  the  permanent  strength  of  the  province  ; 
yet  they  were  not  likely  to  add  much  to  the  elevation  of  char- 
acter and  the  moral  worth  of  the  settlements.* 

During  the  summer  the  colony  received  a  large  increase  of 
population  by  the  arrivals  of  settlers  for  the  different  grants. 
Among  them  were  a  colony  of  sixty  settlers  for  the  grant  of 
St.  Catharine  among  the  Natchez  Indians.  They  were  fol- 
lowed soon  afterward  by  two  hundred  and  fifty  others,  for  the 
same  grant,  in  charge  of  Bouteux.  Every  arrival  now  brought 
colonies  for  the  respective  grants.  Within  a  few  months  pre- 
ceding the  winter,  the  arrivals  for  the  diflTerent  grants  amounted 
to  five  hundred  and  fifty  settlers,  besides  workmen,  soldiers, 
and  officers.f 

New  interests  were  daily  awakened  in  France  by  the  en- 
thusiastic proprietors,  and  new  prospects  of  wealth  were  held 
out  to  induce  emigration.  Hence  the  colony  continued  to  aug- 
ment its  population  rapidly.  White  European  emigrants,  al- 
lured by  the  hope  of  wealth,  and  fascinated  by  the  glowing  de- 
scriptions of  the  magnificence  of  the  country,  continued  to 
come,  and  every  month  witnessed  their  arrival. 

In  the  mean  time,  since  March,  1719,  war  had  raged  between 
France  and  Spain,  and  the  province  of  Louisiana  became  in- 
volved in  hostilities  with  the  Spaniards  of  Florida  and  Mexico. 
The  settlements  of  Louisiana  had  presented  a  continual  scene 
of  military  display  and  hostile  preparation.  So  soon  as  war 
had  broken  out,  Bienville  determined  to  reduce  Pensacola  by 
force  of  arms  before  re-enforcements  should  arrive  from  Mex- 
ico. Accordingly,  in  April,  he  had  assembled  his  forces,  with 
a  party  of  Canadians,  and  about  four  hundred  Indians ;  with 
these,  and  a  few  armed  vessels,  he  made  a  sudden  descent  on 
Pensacola.  The  fort  was  assailed  from  the  harbor  by  the 
armed  vessels,  and  by  the  French  infantry  and  Indians  from 
land;  and  after  a  severe  attack,  and  a  brave  resistance  of 
five  hours,  the  commandant  surrendered  to  the  French  forces. 
Bienville  held  possession  near  forty  days,  when  the  arrival  of 
a  powerful  Spanish  armament  off  the  bay  compelled  him  to 
abandon  the  place  and  retire  to  Mobile.  Here  he  was  block- 
aded for  thirteen  days,  in  the  port  of  Isle  Dauphin,  by  a  su- 
perior Spanish  squadron,  which  vainly  attempted  to  subdue 

*  Martin,  vol.  I,  p.  234.  t  Idem,  p.  336. 


A.D.  1720.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


231 


the  French  posts  on  Dauphin  Island  by  a  furious  bombard- 
ment.* 

The  war  continued  to  harass  the  frontier  settlements  of  Lou- 
isiana contiguous  to  the  Spanish  provinces.  In  September,  M. 
de  Serigny  had  received  orders  to  reduce  the  fort  and  town  of 
Pensacola.  The  whole  disposable  force  of  Louisiana  was  now 
required  to  invest  the  fort  on  the  land  side,  while  the  fleet  ad- 
vanced by  sea.  Bienville,  with  his  land  forces,  and  a  consid- 
erable body  of  Indians,  again  advanced  from  Mobile  to  Pensa- 
cola. After  a  close  investment  by  land  and  sea,  the  fort  and 
town  were  carried  by  assault.  The  citizens  were  spared,  but 
the  town  was  given  up  to  the  pillage  of  the  Indians.  Besides 
the  artillery  and  munitions  of  war,  the  French  took  eighteen 
hundred  prisoners.  Soon  afterward,  several  Spanish  vessels, 
laden  with  stores  and  provisions,  entered  the  port,  ignorant  of 
its  occupation  by  the  French,  and  they  were  likewise  captured. 
But  the  French  occupancy  was  of  short  duration,  for  the  ap- 
prehended arrival  of  a  large  fleet  from  Vera  Cruz  induced  the 
French  commander  to  burn  the  town,  blow  up  the  forts,  and  to 
retire  to  the  port  of  Mobile. 

Nor  was  the  war  with  the  Spaniards  confined  to  the  sea- 
coast  and  the  deltas  of  the  Mississippi  and  lied  River.  The 
traders  and  hunters  from  Santa  Fe  had  discovered  the  route 
across  the  great  American  desert,  and  detachments  of  cav- 
alry had  penetrated  across  the  upper  branches  of  the  Ar- 
kansas to  the  Missouri,  and  to  the  Upper  Mississippi,  and  had 
witnessed  the  advance  of  the  French  in  that  quarter.  The 
Missouri  tribes  inhabiting  this  region  were  in  alliance  with 
the  French,  and  espoused  their  interests.  To  check  their 
advance  in  this  quarter,  the  Spanish  authorities  had  planned 
the  extermination  of  the  Missouris  and  the  French  settlements, 
to  be  replaced  by  a  Spanish  colony  from  Mexico.  Their 
plan  was  to  excite  the  Osages  to  war  with  the  Missouris,  and 
then  take  part  with  them  in  the  contest.  For  this  purpose,  an 
expedition  was  fitted  out  from  Santa  Fe  for  the  Missouri.  It 
was  a  moving  caravan  of  the  desert — armed  men,  horses,  mules, 
families,  women,  priests,  with  herds  of  cattle  and  swine  to  serve 
for  food  on  the  route,  and  to  serve  for  increase  in  the  new  col- 

*  Stoddnrt's  Sketchei,  p.  37,  38.  After  vainly  attempting  to  reduce  the  French 
posts  and  fort  of  Isle  Dauphin,  the  approach  of  a  large  French  fleet,  under  M.  de  Serig- 
ny, caused  the  Spaniards  to  abandon  the  blockade  and  retire  to  Pcusacola.— Stcnldart. 
p.  39. 


232 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


ony.  In  their  march  they  lost  the  proper  route,  the  guides  be- 
came bewildered,  and  led  them  to  the  Missouii  tribes  instead 
of  the  Osages.  Unconscious  of  their  mistake,  as  both  tribes 
spoke  the  same  language,  they  believed  themselves  among  the 
Osages  instead  of  their  enemies,  and  without  reserve  disclosed 
their  designs  against  the  Missouris,  and  supplied  them  with 
arms  and  ammunition  to  aid  in  their  extermination.  The  wily 
savages  perceived  the  fatal  mistake,  but  encouraged  the  error. 
They  requested  two  days  to  assemble  their  warriors  for  the 
contemplated  expedition,  in  which  they  were  rejoiced  to  en- 
gage. The  appointed  time  had  nearly  elapsed,  and  the  follow- 
ing morning  was  the  time  to  march.  More  than  one  hundred 
muskets  were  distributed  among  the  warriors ;  but  to  the 
Spaniards  the  next  morning  never  rose.  Before  the  dawn  of 
light  the  Missouris  fell  upon  their  treacherous  enemies,  and 
dispatched  them  with  an  indiscriminate  slaughter.  The  priest 
alone  was  spared ;  his  dress  had  spoke  him  a  man  of  peace, 
and  he  was  reserved  to  bear  the  sad  tidings  to  Mexico.  Thus 
the  Spanish  treachery  came  home  upon  their  own  heads.* 

This  disaster  apprised  the  commandant-general  of  Louisiana 
of  the  designs  of  the  Spaniards  to  advance  into  Upper  Louisi- 
ana. To  arrest  any  further  attempt,  a  French  post  was  de- 
signed for  the  Missouri.  In  due  time,  M.  Burgmont,  with  a 
detachment  of  troops,  was  dispatched  from  Mobile  to  the  Mis- 
souri River.  He  took  possession  of  an  island  in  that  river, 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Osage,  upon  which  he  built  a  fort,  which 
he  called  "  Fort  Orleans." 

War  continued  to  rage  between  the  rival  powers,  and  the 
maritime  portions  of  Louisiana  and  Florida  were  the  theatre 
of  colonial  hostilities.  The  Indian  tribes  had  been  leagued  in 
with  the  interests  of  the  respective  colonies,  and  carried  on 
their  marauding  excursions  against  the  enemies  of  their  respect- 
ive friends. 

The  late  expedition  from  Santa  Fe  to  the  Missouri,  although 
overwhelmed  with  disaster,  evinced  the  possibility  of  other  ex- 
peditions by  the  same  route  for  the  destruction  of  the  French 
settlements  in  the  Illinois  country  or  Upper  Louisiana.  Fort 
Orleans,  high  up  the  Missouri,  was  already  in  progress  as  an 
outpost ;  but  to  protect  these  important  settlements  from  a  dis- 
astrous invasion,  it  was  deemed  expedient  to  erect  a  strong 

*  Stoddart,  p.  39.    See,  alio,  Wetmore'i  Gazetteer  of  Muiouri,  cd.  1637,  p.  SOO. 


OK  II. 

2S  be- 
stead 
tribes 
ig  the 
ilosed 
,  with 
J  wily 
error, 
or  the 
to  en- 
bllow- 
indred 
to  the 
,wn  of 
>s,  and 
8  priest 

peace, 
Thus 
is.* 

luisiana 
Louisi- 
i^as  de- 

with  a 

le  Mis- 
river, 

,  which 

rnd  the 
theatre 
ued  in 
ried  on 
espect- 

Ithough 
[her  ex- 
iFrench 
Fort 
Is  as  an 
1  a  dis- 
strong 

I  p.  200. 


A.D.  1720.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


233 


military  post  upon  the  Mississippi  itself.  The  Lower  Missis- 
sippi, also,  had  been  threatened  from  the  same  quarter.  The 
necessity  of  securing  the  western  bank  of  that  river  against  the 
hostile  incursions  of  the  Spaniards,  was  evident  to  the  West- 
ern Company  as  well  as  to  Bienville,  the  royal  commandant. 
Hence,  after  the  demolition  of  Pensacola,  the  attention  of  the 
company  was  directed  to  an  extensive  plan  of  defense  against 
the  inroads  of  the  Spaniards  from  Mexico.  A  chain  of  forts 
was  begun,  to  keep  open  a  communication  from  the  mouth  to 
the  sources  of  the  Mississippi. 

M.  Pauger,  a  royal  engineer,  proceeded  to  make  a  complete 
survey  of  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  and  all  the  passes,  bars, 
and  channels  below  the  present  site  of  New  Orleans  city.  By 
this  survey,  it  was  ascertained  that  the  site  selected  by  Bien- 
ville might  be  made  a  commercial  port ;  that  the  practicability 
of  bringing  shipping  up  the  river  was  beyond  a  doubt.*  The 
point  selected  by  him  three  years  before  was  now  about  to  be- 
come the  great  commercial  port  of  the  province.  The  ad- 
vantages of  a  port  on  the  river  were  manifest  to  all,  and  the 
"  directory,"  unable  to  withstand  the  force  of  Bienville's  in- 
fluence and  the  evidence  of  their  own  senses,  yielded  a  reluct- 
ant assent  to  the  removal  of  the  company's  principal  depot 
and  their  offices  to  New  Orleans. 

About  the  same  time,  Lesueur,  with  a  detachment  of  ninety 
men,  advanced  up  the  Mississippi,  and  up  the  St.  Peter's  River 
to  the  Blue  Earth  River  among  the  Sioux,  by  his  estimate,  a 
distance  of  seven  hundred  and  sixty  leagues  from  the  sea  ;  and 
there,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Blue  Earth,  he  erected  a  fort  and  a 
trading-post  for  the  company  ;  and,  with  all  the  usual  formali- 
ties, he  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  name  of  his  most 
Christian  majesty.f 

At  the  same  time,  the  commandant  of  the  Illinois  country, 
M.  Boisbriant.  under  instructions  from  the  king,  commenced 
the  erection  of  a  strong  fortress  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, about  twenty-five  miles  below  Kaskaskia.  This  fort, 
which  was  not  completed  until  eighteen  months  afterward,  was 
called  "  Fort  Chartres,"  and  was  designed  as  the  headquarters 
of  the  commandant  of  Upper  Louisiana.  It  was  a  regular  for- 
tress, built  of  solid  masonry,  and  was  deemed  one  of  the  stron- 
gest French  posts  in  North  America  for  many  years  afterward. 

*  Martin's  Louiaiona,  vol.  i.,  p.  233.  t  Idem. 


234 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


It  was  completely  impregnable  to  any  power  which  could  then 
have  been  brought  against  it.* 

[A.D.  1721.]  Having  secured  Upper  Louisiana  from  Span- 
ish invasion,  the  colonial  authorities,  with  the  hearty  concur- 
rence of  the  directory,  proceeded  to  secure  the  occupation  of 
the  country  west  of  the  Mississippi,  as  far  as  the  Colorado,  and 
eastward  to  the  sources  of  the  Mobile  River.  The  company 
had  never  lost  sight  of  Western  Louisiana,  although  the  Span- 
iards had  claimed  it  as  a  part  of  New  Mexico,  and  had  estab- 
lished temporary  posts  and  missions  as  far  east  as  the  Trinity 
and  the  Sabine  Rivers.  The  directory  considered  it  a  part  of 
Louisiana,  over  which  they  claimed  a  monopoly  of  the  Indian 
trade,  and  from  which  they  desired  the  exclusion  of  the  Span- 
ish missions.  During  the  past  year,  Bernard  de  la  Harpe,  one 
of  the  most  enterprising  commandants  of  Louisiana,  had  led 
an  exploring  detachment  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Rio  Bravo 
del  Norte ;  ho  had  traversed  the  country  from  the  Washita  and 
Arkansas  westward  to  the  sources  of  Red  River.  After  a  tour 
of  six  months,  and  a  laborious  ramble  of  more  than  fifteen  hun- 
dred miles,  visiting  the  different  tribes  of  Indians  in  his  route, 
he  returned  to  New  Orleans  in  the  month  of  January,  1721,  to 
report  the  result  of  his  explorations  to  the  colonial  government. 

From  the  first  operations  of  the  company,  the  directory  had 
evinced  great  anxiety  for  the  occupation  of  the  western  fron- 
tier, with  settlements  and  colonies  west  of  the  Sabine ;  but 
Bienville,  adhering  to  his  policy  of  concentrating  the  settle- 
ments near  the  Mississippi,  had  declined  sending  colonies  to  a 
remote  wilderness,  where  they  would  be  exposed  alike  to  the 

*  For  the  gratification  of  the  curious,  we  give  a  more  particular  account  of  this  prin- 
cipal French  fortress  on  the  Mississippi.  It  was  begun  in  1 720,  and  completed  eighteen 
months  afterward.  It  was  erected  in  the  vicinity  of  Prairie  du  Rocher,  and  was  origi- 
nally one  mile  and  a  half  from  the  river  bank.  Its  form  was  quadrilateral,  with  four 
bastions  built  of  stone,  and  well  cemented  with  lime.  Each  side  was  three  hundred 
and  forty  feet  in  length ;  the  walls  were  three  feet  thick  and  fifteen  feet  high.  Within 
the  walls  were  spacious  stone  barracks,  a  spacious  magazine,  two  deep  wells,  and  such 
buildings  as  are  common  in  such  posts.  The  port-holes,  or  loops,  were  formed  by  four 
■olid  blocks  of  freestone  properly  shaped.  The  cornices  and  casements  about  tlie  gates 
were  of  the  same  material.    It  was  greatly  repaired  and  enlarged  in  1750. 

In  1770,  the  river  broke  through  its  banks  and  formed  a  channel  near  one  of  the  bas- 
tions, and  in  two  years  afterward,  two  bastions  being  undermined,  the  English  aban- 
doned it  in  1772.  It  was  then  suffered  to  fall  to  decay,  and  in  1809  it  was  a  splendid 
ruin,  grown  over  in  its  area  with  forest-trees,  vines,  and  weeds.  Some  of  the  trees  then 
were  from  seven  to  twelve  inches  in  diameter.    See  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  834. 

A  good  description  of  this  fort,  aa  it  appeared  in  1763  and  In  1629,  may  be  seen  in 
Hall's  Sketches  of  the  West,  voL  i.,  p.  154-157. 


A.D. 


1721.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


286 


hostility  of  the  Indians  and  the  treachery  of  the  Spaniards.  At 
length,  yielding  to  their  urgent  desires,  he  resolved  to  take 
formal  possession  of  the  country  on  the  Colorado,  and  near  the 
Bay  of  8t.  Bernard. 

Accordingly,  on  the  10th  of  August,  1721,  he  issued  the  fol- 
lowing order  to  M.  de  la  Harpe,  viz.  :* 

"  Order. 

♦'  We,  Jean  Baptiste  de  Bienville,  chevalier  of  the  military 
order  of  St.  Louis,  and  commandant-general  for  the  king  in 
the  province  of  Louisiana : 

"  It  is  hereby  decreed  that  M.  de  la  Harpe,  commandant 
of  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  shall  embark  in  the  packet,  the 
'Subtile,'  commanded  by  Beranger,  with  a  detachment  of 
twenty  soldiers,  under  M.  de  Belile,  and  shall  proceed  forth- 
with to  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  belonging  to  this  province, 
and  take  possession  in  the  name  of  the  king ;  and  the  Western 
Company  shall  plant  the  arms  of  the  king  in  the  ground,  and 
build  a  fort  upon  whatsoever  spot  appears  most  advantageous 
for  the  defense  of  the  place. 

"  If  the  Spaniards  or  any  other  nation  have  taken  posses- 
sion, M.  de  la  Harpe  will  signify  to  them  that  they  have  no 
right  to  the  country,  it  being  known  that  possession  was  taken 
in  1685  by  M.  de  la  Salle,  in  the  name  of  the  King  of  France, 
&c.  "  Bienville. 

"  August  lOth,  1721." 

La  Harpe  proceeded  upon  the  hazardous  enterprise,  and  es- 
tablished the  post  agreeably  to  his  orders ;  but  the  Indians  were 
in  alliance  with  the  Spaniards,  and  strongly  opposed  the  settle- 
ment. Unwilling  to  expose  his  colony  to  savage  massacre,  he 
determined  to  abandon  so  perilous  a  place.  In  October  follow- 
ing he  returned  to  New  Orleans,  and  reported  to  the  com- 
mandant-general that  he  had  coasted  three  hundred  leagues 
west  of  the  Mississippi,  and  that  on  the  27th  of  August  he  had 
entered  a  fine  bay,  with  eleven  feet  water  at  half  tide ;  that  his 
weak  force  and  the  hostility  of  the  savages  prevented  him  from 
making  a  permanent  establishment ;  that  the  bay  known  to  the 
French  as  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard  was  the  same  known  to  the 
Spaniards  as  the  bay  of  Espiritu  Santo,  and  is  in  latitude  29° 
12'  north,  and  in  longitude  282°  east  from  Ferro.    He  also  gave 

*  See  Darby's  Looiaiana,  p.'  25. 


230 


IIISYORY   or   THE 


[book  II. 


the  extent  of  Louisiana  upon  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  from  this  bay 
eastward,  at  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  leagues.* 

The  colonial  government  continued  to  claim  the  territory 
westward  to  the  Colorado  and  beyond,  and  several  attempts 
were  subsequently  made  to  establish  settlements  west  of  the 
Sabine.  Settlements  were  also  attempted,  with  subsequent 
failure,  high  up  Red  River,  and  upon  the  Upper  Arkansas. 

The  Spaniards,  in  the  mean  time,  pushed  their  settlements 
and  missions  eastward  to  the  Colorado ;  and  parties  of  Span- 
ish cavalry  fro'm  Santa  F6  had  infested  the  region  west  of  the 
Sabine,  until  the  French  were  compelled  to  retire  toward  the 
Mississippi. 

In  the  mean  time,  forts  and  trading-posts  were  extended  east- 
ward upon  the  waters  of  the  Tombigby  and  Alabama  Rivers. 
The  fort  at  Mobile  was  removed  to  the  west  shore  of  the  Mo- 
bile Bay,  and,  being  strongly  fortified,  was  called  "  Fort  Con- 
d6."  The  fort  on  Biloxi  lliy  was  enlarged,  and  called  "Fort 
St.  Louis."  Another  fort  was  advanced  into  the  Indian  coun- 
try to  the  head  of  navigation  on  the  Alabama  River,  two  leagues 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Tallapoosa ;  this  was  called  **  Fort 
Toulouse."t 

In  each  of  these  were  placed  suitable  garrisons  to  defend 
them  against  Indian  hostility,  and  to  protect  the  agents  of  the 
company  from  the  depredations  of  the  savages,  instigated  by 
British  traders  from  Carolina.  Trading-posts  were  established 
with  the  friendly  Choctas  upon  the  Tombigby,  and  upon  the 
Pearl  and  Pascagoula  Rivers. 

In  the  mean  time,  during  the  war,  which  had  now  termina- 
ted, between  the  French  and  Spanish  kings,  the  colonies  of 
Louisiana  had  sulfered  much,  and  the  company  had  become 
greatly  embarrassed  by  the  interruption  of  trade  and  the  hos- 
tilities of  the  Indians ;  yet  they  had  exerted  themselves  with 
energy  to  sustain  the  colonies  in  the  province.  The  population 
had  been  gradually  augmented  by  emigrants  introduced  by  the 
company's  ships,  besides  convicts  and  indigent  females  from  the 
houses  of  correction  in  Paris,  introduced  by  the  king's  vessels. 
But  the  former  of  these  classes  were  not  desirable  emigrants 
for  a  new  colony,  and,  upon  the  petition  of  the  directory,  the 
king  had  interdicted  the  transportation  of  convicts  to  Louisi- 


*  Darby's  Louiiiona,  firs!:  ed.,  p.  26.    Also,  Stoddart,  p.  39,  40. 
f  See  Martin'i  Looiiiana.    AUo,  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  348,  349. 


A.D.  1722.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MI88I8SIPPI. 


287 


ana  after  the  0th  day  of  May,  1720.*  The  latter  were  not  so 
objectionable ;  for,  although  they  would  add  but  little  to  the  good 
morals  of  the  colonists,  they  were  a  valuable  acquisition  to  a 
new  and  growing  colony.  Several  hundred  of  these  indigent 
females,  taken  from  the  hospital-general  and  the  houses  of  cor- 
rection, were  subsequently  introduced  into  Louisiana,  and  con- 
trii)uted  largely  to  the  future  population. 

Emigrants  for  the  different  colonies  had  arrived  during  the 
past  year.  Early  in  January,  one  of  the  company's  ships  had 
arrived  at  Mobile  with  three  hundred  settlers  for  Madame 
Chaumonot's  grant  on  the  Pascagoula  River.  In  February,  an- 
other vessel  had  arrived  with  one  hundred  emigrants  and  pas- 
sengers for  difi'erent  colonies  and*  grants  on  the  Mississippi ; 
also  with  them  came  eighty  girls  from  the  Salpetriere,  a  house 
of  correction  in  Paris.  Early  in  March,  one  of  the  company's 
vessels  had  arrived  at  Mobile,  with  two  hundred  emigrants  for 
John  Law's  grant  on  the  Arkansas.  They  proceeded  from  Mo- 
bile, by  way  of  the  lakes  and  Iberville  Bayou,  to  the  Mississip- 
pi, and  thence  to  the  Arkansas.  A  portion  of  them  settled 
about  sixty  miles  above  the  mouth  of  that  river,  at  a  point  long 
afterward  known  as  the  "  Post  of  Arkansas."  Others  advanced 
further  up  the  river,  and  settled  upon  the  margins  of  the  great 
prairies  which  lie  southeast  of  Little  Rock. 

[A.D.  1722.]  The  numerous  arrivals  of  colonists  and  emi- 
grants during  the  last  two  years  had  increased  the  population 
so  rapidly  in  the  new  and  uncultivated  country,  which  had  not 
yet  developed  its  agricultural  resources,  that  the  supply  of 
grain  and  breadstuffs  was  insufficient  for  their  supply.  A 
scarcity,  bordering  on  famine,  was  the  consequence.  Supplies 
from  France  were  irregular  and  insufficient;  and  the  troops 
and  many  of  the  colonists  were  compelled  to  disperse  among 
the  friendly  tribes  of  Indians,  in  order  to  procure  food  and  sus- 
tenance. Others  were  compelled  to  sustain  themselves  and 
their  families  by  the  precarious  supplies  derived  from  fishing 
and  hunting.  Distress  and  gloom  overspread  the  settlements  ; 
many  sickened  and  died  for  want  of  wholesome  food,  added  to 
the  influence  of  a  new  and  unhealthy  climate.  Yet  emigrants 
from  France  continued  to  arrive.  Near  the  first  of  June,  one 
vessel  arrived  at  Mobile  with  two  hundred  and  fifty  emigrants 
for  the  different  settlements. 

*  Martiu's  Loaiaiana,  vol  i.,  p.  S24. 


I 


888 


IIIHTORY    op   THE 


[book  II. 


Bienvillo  ur^ed  his  apririiltnrul  settlement«  m  the  only  pro- 
tection against  such  dearth  in  future.  NegrocH  continued  to 
arrive  lor  the  agricultural  establishments,  which  were  opening 
on  the  river  alluvions,  the  governor  having  already  abandoned 
Mobile  and  St.  I^ouis  Bay. 

Instead  of  the  sterile  santls  of  Mobile  and  Blloxi,  he  had 
caused  the  colonics  to  be  located  upon  the  fertile  alluvions  of 
the  Mississippi ;  and  ho  now  jirepare*!  to  remove  the  head- 
quarters of  the  provincial  government  to  New  Orleans.  With 
the  (Consent  of  the  directory,  the  company's  principal  establish- 
ment was  also  to  be  removed  tt»  New  Orleans  early  in  Novem- 
ber following  ;  and  buildings  for  the  governor  and  for  the  com- 
[)any's  officers,  and  warehouses,  were  to  be  erected. 

[A.D.  1723.]  The  following  year  opened  with  New  Orleans 
the  provincial  and  commercial  caj)ital  of  Louisiana.  The  su- 
perior judgment  of  Bienville,  relative  to  the  great  commercial 
advantages  of  New  Orleans  over  Mobile  and  Biloxi,  has  been 
approved  by  the  verdict  of  posterity.  The  site  which,  accord- 
ing to  the  interested  judgment  of  M.  Hubert,*  "never  would 
be  any  thing  more  than  a  depot  for  goods"  under  a  privileged 
company,  has  in  less  than  a  century  become  the  great  com- 
mercial emporium  of  a  powerful  union  of  states  which  have 
sprung  up  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississip))!,  and  also  the  politi- 
cal capital  of  one  of  the  richest  states  in  that  union. 

Yet  the  comj%ny  had  become  greatly  embarrassed  in  their 
fmancial  afl'airs.  The  war  with  Spain,  for  two  years,  had  cut 
otr  all  maritime  commerce ;  the  inland  trade  with  the  Spanish 
provinces  of  Mexico  and  Florida  had  been  entirely  prohibited  ; 
many  of  the  Indian  tribes,  influenced  by  emissaries  from  Mex- 
ico, Florida,  and  from  the  English  settlements  of  Carolina,  had 
shown  a  hostile  attitude,  and  had  committed  depredations  upon 
the  trade  of  the  interior  ;  the  troops  in  garrison,  suflering  under 
privations  and  want,  had  become  disgusted  with  their  situation, 
and  were  disaflected ;  the  garrison  at  Fort  Toulouse  had  re- 
volted during  the  last  year,  and  out  of  twenty-six  soldiers, 
twenty  departed  for  the  English  settlements  of  Carolina  ;  but 
overtaken  by  Villemont,  the  commandant,  with  a  body  of 
Choctas,  some  of  the  unhappy  wretches  were  put  to  death 

*  M.  Hubert  had  been  diroctor-i^encral  of  the  company's  affairs,  and  personally  was 
interested  in  a  largo  planting  establislunent  apon  the  grant  formerly  made  to  him  on 
the  6t.  Catharine  Creek,  in  the  Natchez  country,  where  he  had  desired  to  establish  the 
lieaJiiuarters  of  the  colonial  goverumeut,  and  a  principal  dop6t  of  the  company. 


A.I).  1723.] 


VAM.RY    OP   TIIR    MIMIBSim. 


330 


on  the  spot ;  pnrt  were  reserved  for  n  more  ignoininioiw  death, 
nnd,  conducted  to  Mobile,  were  retained  to  ^rnv  military  ex- 
ecution. Kven  the  wilderness  could  not  moderate  the  barba- 
rism ot' military  discipline. 

About  the  same  time,  the  hostile  bands  <M  the  (.'liickaNus  had 
destroyed  Fort  »St.  Peter,  on  the  Ya/.«M>  .ind  ha<l  masHa<'red 
the  garrison  and  colony  with  indiscriniiiLsle  butchery.'  The 
Creeks,  on  the  head  waters  ottho  Alal»;niia,  and  the  (yliickasAs 
of  the  Tombigby,  had  likewise  evinced  hostile  intentiouH,  under 
the  instigation  of  English  traders.  War  had  al.so  broken  out 
among  the  tribes  on  the  Missouri  and  Upper  Mississippi  lliv- 
ers,  and  threatened  the  interru',)tion  of  trade  in  that  cpiartcr. 

Under  all  these  enjbarrnsxm-iits,  the  company  struggled  on, 
in  hopes  of  more  propitious  ..mies.  The  expenses  already  had 
far  exceeded  the  proceeds  of  every  branch  n(  trade.  Before 
the  beginning  of  the  year  1722,  the  expenditures  had  amounted 
to  l,l()8,2r)((  livres,  or  nearly  $3(M5,0()(),  without  any  ecpiivalent 
return. t  Now  the  heaviest  loss  had  come  tipon  them,  from  the 
failure  of  Law's  financial  schemes,  which  had  spread  confusion 
into  every  department  of  the  company's  aflUirs ;  for  they  were 
intimately  blended  with  his  "  Bubble,"  known  as  the  "  Missis- 
sippi Scheme." 

In  the  mean  time,  settlements  were  concentrating  around 
New  Orleans ;  cabins,  houses,  a  church,  and  other  public  build- 
ings had  been  rapidly  progressing  for  the  residence  of  the  gov- 
ernor, the  company's  agents,  and  their  commercial  operations. 
In  January,  when  visited  by  Charlevoix,  it  contained,  besides 
the  church,  the  company's  warehouse,  and  a  few  other  wooden 
buildings,  near  one  hundred  cabins,  and  about  two  hundred 
inhabitants,  besides  troops  and  government  officers.  J  The  pop- 
ulation increased  continually,  and  soon  after  the  fust  (»f  Au- 
gust, this  year,  the  public  buildings  for  the  governor  and  the 
company  having  been  completed,  Bienville  removed  his  head- 
quarters to  the  city,  and  in  November  following,  Delorme,  the 
director-general  of  the  company,  removed  the  stores  and  offi- 
ces under  his  control  from  the  Bay  of  Biloxi  to  the  same  point.§ 

The  embarrassed  condition  of  the  company  caused  them  to 
resort  to  various  means  and  devices  to  enable  them  to  contin- 
ue their  operations,  and  to  increase  their  available  resources. 


*  See  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  353.    Altu,  Stcxldart,  p.  47. 
t  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  310. 


t  See  Stoddart,  p.  36. 
$  Martin,  vul.  i.,  p.  352. 


240 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


The  price  of  negro  slaves,  of  which  they  held  the  monopoly, 
was  increased  from  six  hundred  livres  for  men  to  six  hundred 
and  seventy  livres,  or  from  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  to 
nearly  one  hundred  and  seventy  dollars,  payable  in  three  an- 
nual instalments,  of  rice  and  tobacco.  Rice  was  receivable  at 
twelve  livres  per  barrel,  and  tobacco  at  twenty-six  livres  per 
hundred  pounds.  The  value  of  the  Mexican  dollar  was  made 
equivalent  to  four  livres  in  all  transactions  with  the  company's 
agents  in  Louisiana ;  the  livre  was  thus  made  equivalent  to 
twenty-five  cents  of  the  Federal  money  of  the  United  States.* 

But  the  failure  of  "  Law's  Mississippi  Scheme"  did  not,  in 
Louisiana,  fall  upon  the  Western  Company  alone.  Its  disas- 
trous consequences  were  experienced  in  every  part  of  the  prov- 
ince, from  the  slave  and  the  humblest  peasant  up  to  the  govern- 
or himself,  and  the  wealthy  proprietors  in  the  oldest  settlements. 
That  it  may  serve  as  a  beacon-light  to  future  legislators,  to 
warn  them  from  the  disastrous  consequences  which  result  from 
legislative  enactments,  designed  to  expand  the  circulating  me- 
dium, but  which,  in  reality,  only  drive  the  real  currency  of  a 
country  from  circulation  by  substituting  a  fictitious  representa- 
tive, we  subjoin  the  following  graphic  sketch  from  the  inimita- 
ble work  of  the  eloquent  Bancroft. 

"  The  Mississippi  Scheme"  was  a  system  of  credit,  devised 
and  proposed  by  John  Law,  a  native  of  Scotland,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  extricating  the  French  government  from  the  embar- 
rassment under  which  it  struggled  by  reason  of  the  enormous 
state  debt.  "  The  debt  which  Louis  XIV.  bequeathed  to  his 
successor,  after  arbitrary  reductions,  exceeded  two  thousand 
millions  of  livres ;  and,  to  meet  the  annual  interest  of  eighty 
millions,  the  surplus  revenues  of  the  state  did  not  yield  more 
than  nine  millions ;  hence  the  national  securities  were  of  uncer- 
tain value,  and  the  national  burdens  exceeded  the  national  re- 
sources. In  this  period  of  depression,  John  Law  proposed  to 
the  regent  a  credit  system,  which  should  liberate  the  state  from 
its  enormtus  burden,  not  by  loans,  on  which  interest  must  be 
ppid — not  by  taxes,  that  would  be  burdensome  to  the  people, 
but  by  a  system  which  should  bring  all  the  money  of  France 
on  deposit.  It  was  the  faith  of  Law  that  the  currency  of  a 
country  is  but  the  representative  of  its  moving  wealth ;  that 
this  representative  need  not,  in  itself,  possess  an  intrinsic  value, 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  246,  S5C. 


AD.  1723.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


241 


an- 


but  may  be  made,  not  of  stamped  metals  only,  but  of  shells  or 
paper ;  that  vvliere  gold  and  silver  are  the  only  circulating  me- 
dium, the  wealth  of  a  nation  may  at  once  be  indefinitely  in- 
creased by  an  arbitrary  infusion  of  paper ;  that  credit  consists 
in  the  excess  of  circulation  over  immediate  resources ;  and  that 
the  advantage  of  credit  is  in  the  direct  ratio  of  that  'excess. 
Applying  these  maxims  to  all  France,  he  gradually  planned  the 
whimsically  gigantic  project  of  collecting  all  the  gold  and  sil- 
ver of  the  kingdom  into  one  bank.  At  first,  from  his  private 
bank,  having  a  nominal  capital  of  six  million  livres  (of  which 
a  part  was  payable  in  government  notes),  bills  were  emitted 
with  moderation ;  and  while  the  despotic  government  had  been 
arbitrarily  changing  the  value  of  its  coin,  his  notes,  being  pay- 
able in  coin,  at  an  unvarying  standard  of  weight  and  fineness, 
bore  a  small  premium.  When  Crozat  resigned  the  commerce 
of  Louisiana,  it  was  transferred  to  the  '  Western  Company,'  or 
Company  of  the  Mississippi,  instituted  under  the  auspices  of 
Law.  The  stock  of  the  corporation  was  fixed  at  two  hundred 
thousand  shares,  of  five  hundred  livres  each,  to  be  paid  in  any 
certificates  of  public  debt.  Thus  nearly  one  hundred  millions 
of  the  most  depreciated  of  the  public  stocks  were  suddenly  ab- 
sorbed. The  government  thus  changed  the  character  of  its 
obligations  from  an  indebtedness  to  individuals  to  an  indebt- 
edness to  a  favored  company  of  its  own  creation.  Through 
the  bank  of  Law,  the  interest  on  the  debt  was  discharged  punc- 
tually, and,  in  consequence,  the  evidences  of  debts,  which  were 
received  in  payment  for  stock,  rose  rapidly  from  a  depreciation 
of  two  thirds  to  par  value.  Although  the  union  of  the  bank, 
with  the  hazards  of  a  commercial  company,  was  an  omen  of 
the  fate  of'  the  system,'  public  credit  seemed  restored  as  if  by 
miracle."* 

The  mines,  and  commerce,  and  boundless  extent  of  Louisi- 
ana were  now  invoked  to  sustain  the  public  credit  and  the  bank. 
"  The  human  mind  is  full  ot  trust ;  men  in  masses  always  have 
faith  in  the  ai)proach  of  better  times ;  humanity  abounds  in 
hope.  The  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  inflamed  the  imagination 
of  France ;  anticipating  the  future,  the  French  nation  beheld 
the  certain  opulence  of  coming  ages  as  within  their  immediate 
grasp ;  and  John  Law,  who  possessed  the  entire  confidence  of 

*  Bancroft,  vol  iiL,  p.  349-351. 

Vol.  L— Q 


/ 


242 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


the  regent,  obtained  the  whole  control  of  the  commerce  of  Lou- 
isiana and  Canada."* 

"  The  ill  success  of  La  Salle,  of  Iberville,  of  Crozat,  the  fruit- 
lessness  of  the  long  search  for  the  mines  of  St.  Barbe,  were 
notorious  ;  yet  tales  were  revived  of  the  wealth  of  Louisiana ; 
its  ingots  of  gold  had  been  seen  in  Paris.  The  vision  of  a 
fertile  empire,  with  its  plantations,  manors,  cities,  and  busy 
wharves,  a  monopoly  of  commerce  throughout  all  French 
North  America,  the  certain  products  of  the  richest  silver  mines, 
and  mountains  of  gold,  were  blended  in  the  French  mind  into 
one  boundless  promise  of  untold  treasures.  The  regent,  who 
saw  opening  before  him  unlimited  resources,  the  nobility,  the 
churchmen,  who  competed  for  favors  from  the  privileged  in- 
stitution, the  stock-jobbers,  including  dukes  and  peers,  mar- 
shals and  bishops,  women  of  rank,  statesmen  and  courtiers, 
eager  to  profit  by  the  sudden  and  indefinite  rise  of  stocks,  con- 
spired to  reverence  Law  as  the  greatest  man  of  the  age."t 

"  In  January  of  1719,  the  bank  of  Law  became,  by  a  nego- 
tiation with  the  regent,  the  Bank  of  France,  and  a  government 
which  had  almost  absolute  power  of  legislation,  conspired  to 
give  the  widest  extension  to  what  was  called  credit.  The  con- 
test between  paper  and  specie  began  to  rage,  the  one  buoyed 
up  by  despotic  power,  the  other  appealing  to  common  sense. 
Within  four  years  a  succession  of  decrees  changed  the  relative 
value  of  the  livre  not  less  than  fifty  times,  that,  from  disgust  at 
fluctuation,  paper  at  a  fixed  rate  might  be  preferred.  All  taxes 
were  to  be  collected  in  paper ;  at  least,  paper  was  made  the 
legal  tender  in  all  payments.  To  win  the  little  gold  and  silver 
that  was  hoarded  by  the  humbler  classes,  small  bills  as  low 
even  as  ten  livres  were  put  in  circulation."J 

To  absorb  the  enormous  issues,  a  new  scheme  was  put  in 
operation.  Two  kinds  of  paper  bills,  payable  on  demand,  and 
certificat-^s  of  stock,  were  put  abroad  together.  To  absorb  its 
issues,  new  shares  of  the  Mississippi,  or  Western  Company, 
were  constantly  created  and  oflTered  for  sale,  under  its  new 
name  of  "Company  of  the  Indies."  "  The  extravagance  of  hope 
was  nourished  by  the  successive  surrender  to  that  corporation 
of  additional  monopolies.  The  trade  in  Africans,  the  trade  on 
the  Indian  seas,  the  sale  of  tobacco,  the  profits  of  the  royal 
mint,  the  profits  of  farming,  the  whole  revenue  of  France,  till 

•  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  349.  t  Ibidem,  p.  350,  351.  t  Ibidem,  p.  355. 


A.D.  1723.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


243 


ut  in 
and 
b  its 
mny, 
new 
hope 
atioii 
Je  on 
oyal 
e,  till 

,  355. 


a  promise  of  a  dividend  of  forty  per  cent,  from  a  company 
which  had  the  custody  of  all  the  revenues,  and  the  benefit  of 
all  the  commerce  of  France,  obtained  belief,  and  the  shares 
which  might  be  issued  after  a  payment  of  a  first  instalment  of 
five  hundred  livres  rose  in  price  a  thousand  per  cent.  Avarice 
became  a  phrensy,  its  fury  seized  every  member  of  the  royal 
family,  men  of  letters,  prelates,  women.  Early  in  the  morning, 
the  exchange  opened  with  beat  of  drum  and  sound  of  bell,  and 
closed  at  night  on  avidity  that  could  not  slumber.  To  doubt 
the  wealth  of  Louisiana  provoked  anger.  New  Orleans  was 
famous  at  Paris  as  a  beautiful  city  almost  before  the  cane- 
brakes  began  lo  be  cut  down.  The  hypocrisy  of  manners, 
which,  in  the  old  age  of  Louis  XIV.,  made  religion  become  a 
fashion,  revolted  to  libertinism,  and  licentious  pleasure  was  be- 
come the  parent  of  an  equally  licentious  cupidity."  The  sys- 
tem perpetuated  its  own  absurdities,  and  plunged  its  votaries 
still  further  into  ruin.  "  In  the  course  of  sixteen  months  more 
than  two  thousand  millions  of  bills  were  emitted.  The  ex- 
travagances of  stock-jobbing  were  increased  by  the  latent  dis- 
trust alike  of  the  shares  and  of  the  bills  ;  men  purchased  stock 
because  they  feared  the  end  of  the  paper  system,  and  because, 
with  the  bills,  they  could  purchase  nothing  else."*  The  fraud 
grew  too  apparent,  and  the  Parliament  protested  that  the  people 
were  robbed  and  defrauded  of  nearly  their  whole  income.  "  To 
stifle  doubt.  Law,  who  had  made  himself  a  Catholic,  was  ap- 
pointed comptroller-general ;  and  the  new  minister  of  finance 
perfected  the  triumph  of  paper  by  a  decree  that  no  person  or 
corporation  should  have  on  hand  more  than  five  hundred  livres 
in  specie  ;  the  rest  must  be  exchanged  for  paper,  and  all  pay- 
ments, except  for  sums  under  one  hundred  livres,  must  be  paid 
in  paper.  Terror  and  the  dread  of  informers  brought,  within 
three  weeki,  forty-four  millions  into  the  bank.  In  March,  a 
decree  of  council  fixed  the  value  of  the  stock  at  nine  thousand 
livres  for  five  hundred,  and  forbade  certain  corporations  to  in- 
vest money  in  any  thing  else  ;  all  circulation  of  gold  and  silver, 
except  f(n-  cliange,  was  prohibited  ;  all  payments  must  be  made 
in  paper,  except  for  sums  under  ten  livres.  He  who  should 
have  attempted  to  convert  a  bill  into  specie  would  have  ex- 
posed his  specie  to  forfeiture,  and  himself  to  fines.  Confidence 
disappeared,  and  in  May,  bankruptcy  was  avowed  by  a  decree 
which  reduced  the  value  of  bank  notes  by  a  moiety." 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  356. 


244 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[lidOK  II. 


"  When  men  are  greatly  in  the  wrong,  and  especially  when 
they  have  enibarked  their  fortunes  in  their  error,  they  wilfully 
resist  light.  So  it  had  been  with  the  French  people  ;  they  re- 
mained faithful  to  their  delusion,  till  France  was  impoverished, 
public  and  private  credit  subverted,  the  income  of  capitalists 
annihilated,  and  labor  left  without  employment ;  while,  in  the 
midst  of  the  universal  wretchedness  of  the  middling  class,  a 
few  wary  speculators  gloried  in  the  unjust  acquisition  and  en- 
joyment of  immense  wealth."* 

"  Such  was  the  issue  of  Law's  celebrated  system,  which  left 
the  world  a  lesson  which  the  world  was  slow  to  learn,  that 
the  enlargement  of  the  circulation  quickens  industry  so  long 
only  as  the  enlargement  continues,  for  prices  then  rise,  and 
every  kind  of  labor  is  remunerated  ;  that,  when  this  increase 
springs  from  artificial  causes,  it  must  meet  with  a  check,  and 
be  followed  by  a  reaction ;  that,  when  the  reaction  begins,  the 
high  remunerating  prices  decline,  labor  fails  to  find  an  equiva- 
lent, and  each  evil  opposite  to  the  previous  advantages  ensues ; 
that,  therefore,  every  artificial  expansion  of  the  currency,  every 
expansion  resting  on  credit  alone,  is  a  source  of  confusion  anJ 
ultimate  loss  to  the  community,  and  brings  benefits  to  none  but 
those  who  are  skillful  in  foreseeing  and  profiting  by  the  fluctu- 
ations." 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  in  Loi^isiana  for  several  years 
after  the  downfall  of  Lav/,  and  his  system  of  finance  in  France 
and  French  America.  Who  then  would  have  believed  that  in 
less  than  one  hundred  and  fifteen  years  from  that  time,  the 
Valley  of  the  Mississippi  would  have  been  the  theatre  of  de- 
lusions almost  as  great,  under  a  new  system  of  credit  held  out 
by  a  hundred  banking  inmitutions  and  chartered  monopolies, 
as  rotten  and  as  baseless  as  Law's  Bank  of  France  ?  Such 
was  the  currency  of  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  among  five 
millions  of  people,  for  four  years  afler  the  year  1834. 

*  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  357. 


A.D.  1723.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MIBBIflSIPPI. 


245 


CHAPTER  VII. 

LOUISIANA   UNDER   THE  "  WE8TEKN   COMPANY,"   FROM   THE   FAILURE 
OF   law's  "  MISSISSIPPI  scheme"  TO  THE  NATCHEZ  MASSACRE. 

A.D.  1723  TO  1729. 

Argument. — State  of  the  Colony  of  Louigiana. — Diinitrous  Kll'ucts  of  Law'a  Failure 
in  17i!a. — Origin  of  the  "  Gem^nn  ('oast."' — Louinittiia  iliviilod  intiiNinr  Jiulicial  Dis- 
tricts.— The  Mininff  UcluRion  still  haunts  the  Company. — First  Outhrcak  of  Hostil- 
ities amun^  the  Natrhez  Indians. — Bienville's  stem  and  cruel  Deinantls.  —  Mil 
Treachery  and  Revenge  against  the  Natchez. — Their  Feelings  toward  the  French. — 
Threatening  Attitude  of  Indian  Trihes. — Crops  and  Plantations  destroyed  hy  Kciui- 
noctial  titorm. — Colony  threatened  with  Famine. — Swiss  TpKipg  llevolt. — Financial 
DiiHculties. — Population  in  ITi'i. — Iloyal  Edicts  for  lleliefof  Debtors. — Prosperity 
in  1724-6. — Province  supplied  with  Rcciesiastics  and  Nuns.— Chevalier  Perrier  ap- 
pointed QovenM)r  of  the  Province. — Bienville  retires. — Colonial  Prosperity  and  Trade 
in  1726-7. — Indigo,  Fig,  and  Orange  introduced. — "(Jassctto  Girls." — Liuiil  Titles  re- 
corded.—Pn)sperous  Condition  in  172a. — Population. — Tviide.— Indications  of  Indian 
Hostilities  disregarded  by  Company. — French  Aggressions  and  Intolerance  toward 
the  Natchez  Tribe. — Indian  Impatience  of  llevenge. — French  Indifi'crcnce  to  Dan- 
ger.— Chii^kasii  Conspiracy. — Chopart's  Aggressions  amouj;  the  Natt^hez. — Conspira- 
cy of  the  Natchez  Chiefs  for  Revenge. — Chopart's  Insensibility  to  Danger.— Colony 
on  the  St.  Catharine  destroyed  by  tho  Indiana,  November  26,  17!)2. — Massacre,  and 
the  Slain. 

[A.D.  1723.]  The  failure  of  Law's  financial  schemes  fell 
heavily  upon  Louisiana.  The  rapid  expansion  of  tlie  circulating 
medium  throughout  the  province  during  the  first  three  years 
of  his  operations,  and  the  consequent  sudden  prostration  of  all 
business  upon  his  failure,  involved  the  interests  of  the  com- 
pany, and  embarrassed  their  operations  for  advancing  the 
population  and  prosperity  of  the  province.  Although  emi- 
grants from  France  and  Canada  continued  to  arrive  at  New 
Orleans  and  upon  the  Illinois,  yet  the  remote  settlements  in 
Lower  Louisiana,  such  as  those  upon  the  Arkansas,  the  Yazoo, 
and  the  Washita,  were  in  a  great  measure  deserted  by  the 
starving  and  discontented  colonists. 

The  number  of  settlers  remaining  at  Law's  grant  on  the 
Arkansas  in  1722  had  been  reported  by  La  Harpe  at  forty 
souls.  The  settlement  at  Fort  St.  Peter  was  still  more  feeble, 
with  only  thirty  acres  of  land  in  cultivation  ;  that  on  the  Wash- 
ita was  but  little  better. 

So  soon  as  Law's  failure  affected  the  regular  supplies  to  his 
colony  on  the  Arkansas,  they  were  on  the  verge  of  starvation, 


246 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


and  were  neglected  by  his  agents.  Disappointed  in  their  ex- 
pectations, and  finding  themselves  deserted  in  the  midst  uf  guv- 
ages,  who  viewed  tJiem  with  a  jealous  eye,  they  resolved  t(i 
abandon  their  settlement,  and,  if  possible,  return  tu  Europe. 
They  were  chiefly  Germans  from  Provence,  and,  situated  re- 
mote from  the  other  French  settlements,  they  departed  for 
New  Orleans,  determined  to  seek  passage  in  the  first  vessel 
bound  for  France.  The  directors  of  the  company,  and  the 
commandant-general,  unwilling  to  permit  the  pernicious  influ- 
ence of  their  example  in  leaving  the  province,  induced  them 
to  remain  and  settle  near  New  Orleans.  For  this  purpose,  u 
grant  of  sufficient  land  was  made  for  their  use,  and  was  lo- 
cated about  twenty  miles  above  New  Orleans,  on  both  sides 
of  the  river.  This  land  was  allotted  to  them  as  a  permanent 
home,  and  was  divided  among  them  in  such  tracts  as  they  in- 
dividually required.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  "  German 
Coast"  of  Louisiana,  which,  for  several  years  afterward,  sup- 
plied the  city  of  New  Orleans  and  the  troops  with  rich  horti- 
cultural products.* 

Heretofore  Louisiana  had  been  a  subordinate  dependence, 
jnder  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Governor-general  of  Canada.  It 
was  now  determined  to  erect  it  into  an  independent  govern- 
ment; and  accordingly,  early  in  the  year  1723,  the  province 
of  Louisiana  was  divided  into  nine  districts,  lor  civil  and  mil- 
itary purposes.  Each  was  under  the  jurisdiction  of  a  com- 
mandant and  a  judge,  who  administered  the  military  and  civil 
concerns  of  their  respective  districts.f  Sometimes  the  same 
person  filled  both  offices. 

Notwithstanding  the  company  had  embarked  largely  in  ag- 
riculture, and  had  established  large  plantations  on  the  river, 
still  it  refused  to  abandon  the  idea  of  discovering  boundless 
wealth  in  the  mines  of  Missouri.  They  still  believed  that  gold 
and  silver  mines  were  to  be  found  in  the  Illinois  country,  id- 


*  Martin's  LouisiRna,  vol.  i.,  p.  246. 

t  TIte  nine  military  districtg  were  aa  foIlowB,  viz. 


1.  District  uf  the  Alibamona. 

2.  "       of  Mobile. 

3.  "        "  Biloxi. 

4.  "       "  New  Orleans. 

5.  "       "  Natchez. 


6.  District  of  the  Yazoo. 

7.  "        lUinuis    and    Wu 

baah. 

8.  '         "        Arkansas. 

9.  "        "        Natchitoches. 


M.  Boisbriant,  who  arrived  in  March,  172:),  was  the  king's  lieutenant;  Bienville  won 
governor  and  commandant-general ;  M.  Loubois,  a  knight  of  St.  Louis,  was  commainl 
ant  at  Fort  St.  Louis,  on  tho  Biloxi ;  M.  Latour,  lieutenant-general  uf  the  pruvince ;  Do 
lorme,  director-general  of  the  company. — Martin,  vol.  i.,  i.    iO-T. 


A.D.  1723.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISBIdBllMM. 


247 


.1- 


CB. 

rillu  WO* 
)ininancl 
bee  I  Do 


though  M.  Renault,  '•  director-general  of  the  mines,"  had  fail- 
ed to  discover  them  with  his  company  of  two  hundred  miners. 
Desire  begets  credulity ;  and  the  directory,  ever  ready  to  re- 
ceive and  encourage  extravagant  accounts  of  mines,  offered 
rewards  proportionate  to  the  importance  of  the  discovery. 
With  such  incentives,  they  could  not  fail  to  be  amused  with 
the  most  marvelous  exhilarating  discoveries.  Men  are  prune 
to  deception  without  reward ;  and  how  much  more  for  recom- 
pense !  In  this  way  the  attention  of  the  company  continued  to 
be  diverted  to  the  search  of  mines  in  distant  regions,  as  far  as 
the  sources  of  the  St.  Peter's,  the  Arkansas,  the  tributaries  of 
the  Missouri,  and  even  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,**  while  they 
neglected  the  increasing  hostile  indications  among  the  Chicka- 
sas,  the  Natchez,  and  other  tribes  immediately  contiguous  to 
their  principal  settlements.  Under  the  npining  delusion  these 
indications  were  deemed  unworthy  of  serious  attention.  Anx- 
ious to  establish  trading-posts  with  remote  and  unknown  tribes, 
they  neglected  to  protect  their  settlements  from  hostile  tribes 
at  their  very  doors,  while  their  own  uncontrolled  agents  weie 
fanning  the  flame  of  discord  among  their  allies  on  the  Lower 
Mississippi. 

This  year  witnessed  the  first  outbreak  among  the  Natchez 
Indians,  and  many  of  the  settlers  on  the  St.  Catharine  were 
murdered  by  the  hostile  warriors.  The  difficulty  began  in  a 
quarrel  between  a  warrior  and  a  sergeant  in  Fort  Rosalie. 
One  Indian  was  killed,  and  another  was  wounded,  by  an  un- 
provoked fire  from  the  guard.  To  revenge  this  outrage,  the 
Indians  committed  frequent  depredations  u\K>n  the  settlements, 
and  at  different  times  had  killed  a  number  of  the  settlers  on  the 
St.  Catharine.  One  act  of  violence  brings  on  another,  and  at 
length  a  party  of  eighty  warriors  made  a  bold  attack  upon  the 
settlements,  but  were  finally  repulsed  with  the  loss  of  seven  ol 
their  number.  They  had,  however,  kille  I  or  taken  away  a 
number  of  horses,  hogs,  and  cattle  from  the  plantations,  and 
had  captured  and  murdered  two  planters,  whose  heads  were 
afterward  found  severed,  and  their  bodies  disksnored.f 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  253. 

t  A  few  days  after  tlic  difflcalty,  M.  Guenot,  Buperintendent  of  the  St.  Catharint! 
^rant,  while  ridiuK  in  the  rond,  was  ahot  and  wounded  by  an  Indian  from  his  conceal 
ment.  Next  day,  the  Indiana  attempted  to  loize  a  cart-load  of  proviaioni,  which  waa 
guarded  by  a  few  aoldiem.  Tlio  Indiana  concealed  tliemaelvoa  in  the  high  gnua,  aud 
by  die  tint  iire  killed  one  negro  and  wounded  another.— Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  244. 


248 


HISTORY    OK    THE 


[dock  It. 


At  length  a  chief,  called  the  "  Stung  Serpent,"  interposed  his 
influence  and  authority,  and  with  difficulty  he  finally  succeeded 
in  putting  a  stop  to  further  revenge.  Soon  afterward,  with 
other  principal  "  suns,"  he  came  to  Fort  Rosalie  to  arrange  af- 
fairs, and  to  prevent  further  hostilities.  A  reconciliation  took 
place,  which  was  ratified  by  sundry  presents  made  by  tiie 
French  to  the  chiefs.  The  whole  matter  was  subsequently 
laid  before  Bienville,  the  commandant-general.  He  approved 
the  treaty,  and  ratified  the  stipulations  entered  into  by  his  in- 
ferior ofllcers,  and  all  former  animosities  between  the  Indians 
and  the  French  appeared  to  have  been  consigned  to  oblivion. 
But  Bienville  secretly  determined  to  inflict  a  severe  chastise- 
ment upon  the  tribe.*  Having  placed  the  Indians  oflf  their 
guard,  and  removed  all  apprehension  of  danger  from  their 
minds  by  friendly  assurances,  he  made  his  arrangements  to 
take  them  by  surprise.  Accordingly,  a  few  months  afterward, 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly,  Bienville  arrived  at  Fort  Rosalie 
with  seven  hundred  troops.  An  attack  was  immediately  made 
upon  their  villages,  and  the  defenseless  and  unsuspecting  na- 
tives were  slain  without  mercy,  and  their  towns  consumed  by 
fire.  During  four  days,  detachments  of  troops  were  ravaging 
the  country,  laying  waste  their  fields,  burning  their  houses,  and 
killing  such  as  fell  into  their  hands.  At  length  Bienville  agreed 
to  desist  from  further  hostilities,  provided  the  "  suns"  would  de- 
liver to  him  a  certain  obnoxious  chief,  who  held  the  title  of  a 
sun.f  No  alternative  but  submission  was  left  them ;  they  must 
surrender  another  victim  to  the  French  vengeance,  and  that 
victim  a  Sun,  or  they  must  sacrifice  their  people  and  their  fam- 
ilies to  the  armed  soldiery  of  the  French.  At  length  they  con- 
sented to  hold  a  council,  and  several  of  the  chiefs  waited  upon 
him,  and  proposed  to  surrender  common  warriors  as  vicarious 
sacrifices,  instead  of  the  "sun."  Bienville  sternly  refused: 
the  chiefs  and  suns  of  the  council  were  forcibly  detained,  and 
some  of  them  confined  in  irons,  until  the  obnoxious  chief  or  his 
head  should  be  produced.  In  hopes  of  preserving  the  life  of 
the  sun,  a  warrior  volunteered  to  die  in  his  place,  and  his  head 


*  In  recording  the  difficulties  between  the  Natchez  Indians  and  the  Trench  of  St. 
Catharine,  Martin  has  strangely  confused  dates  and  transactions.  Fart  of  the  occur- 
rences by  him  are  placed  under  the  year  1716,  and  part  under  the  year  1723  (see  vol. 
i.,  p.  189,  190,  and  254).  Tliis  confusion  of  date?  'j  Martins  Lonisiana  is  by  no  means 
nnconomon.  See  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  47,  »."  >x  a  proper  detail  of  Natchez  diiRcul- 
ties.  *  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  48. 


A.D.  1723.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


240 


of  St. 
occur- 
»e  vol. 
means 
lifficul- 
48. 


was  carried  to  Bienville  ;  but  he  refused  to  receive  the  suppos- 
ititi(jus  head.  Another  warrior  volunteered  to  die,  and  his  head 
was  presented  to  the  inexorable  Frenchman.  This,  in  like 
manner,  was  refused.  Nothing  but  the  veritable  head  of  the 
obnoxious  sun  would  be  received.  By  the  laws  and  usages  of 
the  Indians,  a  full  atonement  had  been  made,  and  a  full  ransom 
had  been  paid  for  the  life  of  the  sun ;  but  Bienville  was  inexo- 
rable for  the  blood  of  the  sun.  At  length  the  sun  resolved  to 
surrender  himself,  and  thus  procure  the  release  of  his  compan- 
ions, who  were  still  held  as  hostages  for  his  delivery.  Having 
succeeded  in  his  stern  demands,  he  released  the  captive  suns 
and  returned  triumphant  to  New  Orleans,  having  reaped  all 
his  laurels  from  ])eaceable  and  unresisting  Indians. 

From  this  time,  the  Natchez  Indians  despaired  of  ever  being 
able  to  live  in  peace  with  the  French.  They  saw  that  all  their 
former  friendships,  their  favors,  and  their  forbearance  were 
repaid  by  every  species  of  personal  injury,  ingratitude,  and 
usurpation ;  they  saw  plainly  that  either  themselves  or  the 
French  must  be  totally  destroyed,  and  it  was  the  dictate  of  na- 
ture to  consult  their  own  safety.  They  had  found  that  the  in- 
tolerance and  the  usurpation  of  the  French  increased  with  their 
numbers  and  power ;  hence  they  became,  in  their  intercourse,  shy, 
reserved,  and  distrustful ;  yet,  resolved  upon  ultimate  revenge, 
they  were  cautious  in  devising  the  means  of  future  vengeance 
and  safety.  Such  was  the  state  of  things  among  the  Natchez  In- 
dians until  the  summer  of  1729,  when  a  new  aggression  on  the 
part  of  the  French  compelled  them  to  resist,  and  to  resolve 
upon  the  defense  of  their  homes,  and  the  graves  of  their  fathers.* 

The  Chickasas  had  again  exhibited  hostile  indications,  and 
omitted  no  occasion  to  harass  the  settlement  on  the  Yazoo. 
The  post  on  the  Yazoo  was  a  stockade,  feebly  defended  by 
less  than  twenty  men.  Fort  Rosalie  was  but  little  better  than 
a  pile  of  rotten  timbers,  garrisoned  by  sixteen  soldiers.  Yet 
the  company  seemed  to  enjoy  confident  security,  although  Bien- 
ville had  not  failed  to  warn  their  agents  of  the  danger.  The 
Spaniards,  also,  were  advancing  their  settlements  rapidly  into 
Western  Louisiana.! 

Yet  the  impending  vengeance  of  the  Indian  tribes  was  still 
withheld.  Their  unwelcome  neighbors  disregarded  their  dis- 
pleasure, and  added  provocation  to  injury.     Thus  commenced 

*  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  49.  t  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  256. 


350 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


the  first  breach  of  peace  and  confit'cnce  between  the  Natchez 
tribes  and  the  French  of  Louisiana. 

In  a(l(htion  to  all  the  other  niisi'ortunes  of  the  times,  which 
operated  severely  upon  the  people  of  Louisiana,  was  that  of  a 
terrible  equinoctial  storm  on  the  11th  of  September.     The 
crops  had  just  approached  maturity,  and  the  whole  southern 
portion  of  the  province  was  greatly  injured.     Such  was  the 
violence  of  the  storm  at  New  Orleans,  that  the  church,  the  hos- 
pital, and  thirty  houses  were  leveled  with  the  ground  ;  three 
vessels  lying  in  the  river  were  thrown  ashore  and  nearly  de- 
stroyed.    Much  damage  was  sustained  at  Mobile,  Biloxi,  and 
Natchez.     Several  vessels  at  Biloxi  were  entirely  lost.     The 
crops  of  rice  were  destroyed ;  many  houses  of  the  planters 
were  blown  down,  and  their  plantations  otherwise  injured. 
The  scarcity  of  provisions,  in  consequence,  was  greatly  in- 
creased, and  famine  seemed  to  stare  them  in  the  face.     Sup- 
plies from  France  were  cut  off  by  the  financial  embarrassments 
of  the  mother-country  consequent  upon  the  failure  of  Law's 
schemes;  and  many  began  to  despair  at  the  continuation  of 
the  untoward  circumstances  which  brooded  over  the  colony. 
Many,  discouraged  at  these  things,  longed  to  see  once  more 
the  vine-clad  hills  of  France.     Even  the  troops  began  to  evince 
a  spirit  of  insubordination  and  revolt.     This  was  a  new  source 
of  alarm.     Fort  Toulouse,  among  the  Alibamons,  had  been  de- 
serted by  the  garrison,  who  attempted  to  escape  to  their  friends 
in  Carolina.     More  recently,  a  serious  revdt  had  occurred 
close  to  headquarters ;  nor  were  those  in  command  so  fortu- 
nate as  to  capture  and  punish  the  offenders.     A  company  of 
Swiss  troops  had  been  placed  on  board  a  schooner  in  the  Bay 
of  Biloxi,  in  order  to  sail  to  the  new  headquarters  at  New  Or- 
leans.    But  they  dreaded  the  dangers  and  privations  of  the 
Mississippi  swamps  no  less  than  the  sterile  sands  and  lagoons 
of  Biloxi,  and  their  hearts  were  set  upon  seeing  the  desirable 
settlements  of  South  Carolina.    No  sooner  had  the  schooner 
left  the  bay,  than  the  officers  and  soldiers,  rising  in  open  re- 
volt, compelled  the  master  and  crew  to  sail  for  Charleston, 
where  they  all  finally  arrived  in  safety,  with  all  their  bag- 
gage, arms,  and  munitions.** 

To  multiply  the  resources  of  the  province  and  extend  its  agri- 
culture, this  year,  at  the  request  of  a  number  of  planters,  the 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  353. 


A.u.  1724.] 


VAI.LKY    or    Till:    MIHHlrtHIPPI. 


251 


coin|);iny  procured  a  supply  of  indigo  Heeds.  It  had  been  ns- 
certiiined  that  the  soil  and  climate  of  Louisiana  were  well 
adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  indigo ;  and  many  were  anxious 
to  embark  in  the  enterprise.  The  following  year  may  ))e  .said 
to  be  the  period  when  indigo  was  introduced  as  a  sta{)lc  prod- 
uct of  Louisiana. 

f  A.l).  1724.]  In  the  last  six  years  the  company  hud  intro- 
duced four  thousand  and  forty-four  settlers  into  the  province, 
besides  one  hundred  and  fifty  galley-sluves,  and  several  hun- 
dred females  from  the  different  houses  of  correction  of  Paris, 
and  fourteen  hundred  and  ibrty-one  African  slaves.  The  agri- 
cultural resources  of  the  country  were  just  beginning  to  develop 
the  real  wealth  of  Louisiana ;  but  it  was  now  only  that  the 
))eople  began  to  feel  the  full  effects  of  the  financial  experiments 
of  the  Scotch  financier. 

It  was  now  perceived  that  his  paper  money,  or  his  represent- 
ative of  money,  which  had  been  so  extensively  introduced  into 
the  whole  business  of  Louisiana,  had,  in  fact,  not  only  reduced 
the  nominal  value  of  silver  and  gold,  but  that  it  had  driven 
both  from  circulation  and  from  the  province.  The  nominal 
value  of  every  species  of  property  had  increased  with  the  sup- 
ply of  the  paper  representative.  The  facilities  of  obtaining 
this  imperfect  representative  of  money  had  lemoved  all  the 
restraints  which  a  prudent  economy  and  long  experience  had 
established  for  the  regulation  of  business  and  the  proper  accu- 
mulation of  property. 

A  raging  thirst  for  the  rapid  accumulation  of  wealth  had  fol- 
lowed ;  this  had  begotten  a  spirit  of  extravagance  and  specula- 
tion, upon  which  had  been  ingrafted  the  most  ruinous  credit 
system.  This  system  had  been  approaching  a  crisis  for  more 
than  twelve  months.  Now  the  crisis  was  past :  the  only  cir- 
culating medium  had  suddenly  become  depreciated,  and  ceased 
to  represent  half  the  silver  formerly  represented  by  it.  Very 
soon  creditors  refused  to  receive  it  at  any  rate  of  discount,  and 
it  became  utterly  useless.  Specie  was  scarce,  and  now  became 
proportionably  increased  in  its  relative  value.  The  people 
were  left  deeply  involved  in  heavy  debts,  contracted  when  the 
relative  value  of  silver  had  been  reduced  and  a  vast  amount 
of  the  fictitious  representative  was  in  circulation :  now  they 
were  to  pay  only  in  specie :  this  was  equivalent  to  an  onerous 
augmentation  of  their  debts  beyond  the  possibility  of  payment. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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262 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


Legislative  interference  was  loudly  demanded ;  and  the  only 
relief  possible  depended  upon  a  reduction  of  the  amounts  owed, 
or  in  facilitating  the  payment  of  them.  The  latter  mode  was 
adopted  by  the  king.* 

The  accounts  throughout  the  province  had  heretofore  been 
kept  and  estimated  in  livres  as  the  unit  denominated  in  their 
money  transactions.  By  several  edicts  of  the  king,  progress- 
ive in  their  operation,  Mexican  dollars  were  made  the  princi- 
pal circulating  medium.  This  being  effected,  the  next  step 
was  to  increase  the  relative  value  of  Mexican  dollars  in  Lou- 
isiana. From  long  custom  and  usage,  each  Mexican  dollar 
was  equal  to  four  livres.  Mexican  dollars  became  the  sole 
circulating  medium ;  and,  for  the  benefit  of  debtors,  the  king 
issued  his  edict,  declaring  that  the  legal  value  of  every  Mexi- 
can dollar  in  Louisiana  should  be  equal  to  seven  and  a  half 
livres,  and  should  be  a  legal  tender  in  that  ratio.  This  was 
justice  to  the  debtor,  but  the  creditor  complained  that  injustice 
was  done  to  him.  The  debtor  was  favored  at  the  expense  of 
the  creditor.  Still,  in  its  general  effects  and  operation  in  the 
province,  it  might  be  called  sheer  justice  between  man  and 
man.  At  length,  by  other  edicts  of  the  king,  the  relative  value 
of  a  Mexican  dollar  was  gradually  reduced  to  its  former  value 
of  four  livres,  and  all  within  the  space  of  ten  months. 

Such  are  the  consequences  of  all  attempts  to  inflate  the  cur- 
rency by  arbitrary  and  factitious  representations  of  money. 

The  upper  portion  of  Louisiana  was  harassed  with  Indian 
hostilities,  on  the  part  of  hostile  tribes  on  the  western  side  of 
the  Missouri  River,  probably  instigated  by  the  Spanish  em- 
issaries from  Mexico.  During  the  state  of  hostile  feeling 
among  these  tribes,  the  **  Fort  Orleans,"  on  the  Missouri  Riv- 
er, was  utterly  destroyed,  and  the  garrison  and  the  little  colo- 
ny contiguous  were  totally  exterminated  by  some  unknown 
bands ;  thus  sharing  the  same  fate  experienced  by  the  Span- 
ish colony,  in  the  same  region,  about  three  years  before.f 

[A.D.  1725.]  Bienville  continued  to  administer  the  govern- 
ment with  great  firmness,  and  often  with  great  wisdom.  The 
settlements  gradually  revived,  and  the  province  continued  grad- 
ually to  augment  its  population,  while  the  embarrassments  of 
*  the  last  two  years  had  nearly  passed  over.  Before  the  close 
of  the  year  1726,  the  province  had  in  a  great  measure  recov- 
ered from  the  effects  of  financial  embarrassments. 


*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  256-7. 


t  Stoddart'i  Loaiaiana,  p.  45,  46. 


A.D.  1726.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


253 


[A.D.  1726.]  During  the  following  year,  agriculture  began 
to  flourish,  and  a  healthy  state  of  trade  began  to  pervade  ev- 
ery department  of  the  province.  Emigrants,  both  from  Cana- 
da and  France,  continued  to  arrive. 

Early  in  this  year,  the  company  made  arrangements  with 
the  Jesuits  to  supply  the  different  posts  and  settlements  with 
priests,  missionaries,  and  ecclesiastics.  Father  Petit,  superior 
of  the  Jesuits,  was  to  reside  in  New  Orleans.  The  Jesuits  en- 
gaged to  keep  at  least  fourteen  priests  of  their  order  in  the  col- 
ony, besides  missionaries  at  the  different  posts,  and  especially 
at  St.  Peter's,  on  the  Yazoo,  for  the  purpose  of  forming  friend- 
ly alliances  with  the  Indians,  and  to  propagate  the  Catholic 
faith  among  them.  They  were  to  be  paid  and  provided  for 
by  the  company's  agents.  Arrangements  were  also  made  for 
the  introduction  of  a  number  of  Ursuline  nuns,  to  take  charge 
of  the  education  of  females  and  the  care  of  a  hospital,  assisted 
by  several  other  sisters  of  charity ;  but  they  did  not  arrive  in 
the  city  until  the  summer  of  the  following  year.* 

In  the  autumn,  the  government  of  Louisiana  passed  out  of 
the  hands  of  Bienville,  who  was  superseded  by  M.  Perrier  as 
commandant-general  of  the  province.  Bienville,  with  great 
propriety,  has  been  called  the  father  of  Louisiana.  He  arrived 
in  1799  at  Dauphin  Island,  as  a  midshipman,  at  the  age  of 
eighteen  years.  Three  years  afterward,  he  succeeded  Sau- 
voUe,  an  elder  brother,  as  governor  of  the  province  and  com- 
mandant of  Fort  St.  Louis ;  and,  with  but  two  intermissions, 
he  had  been  invested  with  the  office  of  governor  and  com- 
mandant-general of  the  province  ever  since. 

The  province  continued  to  improve  in  prosperity  for  nearly 
two  years  after  M.  Perrier  entered  upon  the  duties  of  govern- 
or. Emigrants  from  France  and  Canada  continued  to  swell 
the  general  population,  and  to  augment  the  resources  of  the 
province.  The  agricultural  products  of  the  older  settlements, 
in  the  Illinois  country  and  on  the  Wabash,  yielded  a  bountiful 
supply  to  the  new  colonies  and  settlements  on  the  Lower  Mis- 
sissippi. In  these  regions,  wheat,  flour,  maize,  beef,  pork,  ba- 
con, leather,  tallow,  hides,  bees'  wax,  bears'  oil,  and  many  oth- 
er useful  articles,  were  produced  in  abundance.  In  Lower 
Louisiana,  tobacco  and  rice  had  been  produced  in  considera- 
ble quantities ;  and  indigo,  which  had  been  introduced  within 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol  i.,  p.  861-S64. 


t-*' 


254 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  U. 


three  years,  had  already  become  a  valuable  staple  product. 
The  fig-tree  had  been  introduced  from  Provence,  and  the  or- 
anqe-tree  from  Hispaniola,*  and  both  were  now  common  about 
New  Orleans. 

In  the  month  of  December,  the  company's  ships  brought  over 
a  number  of  poor  young  girls,  but  of  good  moral  character,  as 
emigrants  to  the  colony.  Each  of  them  was  supplied  with  a 
small  box,  or  "  cassette,"  containing  a  few  articles  of  clothing, 
from  which  they  were  known  as  the  girls  **de  la  cassette,"  and 
were  placed  under,  the  care  of  the  nuns  until  they  could  be 
provided  for  in  marriage,  f 

Already  lands  had  become  valuable  in  the  settlements,  and 
litigation  began  to  test  the  validity  of  titles ;  and,  to  prevent 
the  frequent  recurrence  of  disputed  claims,  the  directory  issu- 
ed an  order  requiring  those  holding  grants  to  come  forward 
and  have  them  duly  authenticated,  under  penalty  of  fine  and 
forfeiture.  Larger  grants,  not  properly  improved,  were  re- 
duced ;  or,  on  failure  to  comply  with  the  terms,  were  formally 
revoked. 

[A.D.  1728.]  The  colony  was  now  in  its  highest  prosperity. 
Although  it  had  languished  until  placed  under  the  control  of 
the  Western  Company,  yet  under  their  management  it  had 
reached  a  degree  of  population,  and  advance  in  agriculture  and 
commerce,  highly  creditable  to  the  company  and  honorable  to 
France. 

The  company  now  had  controlled  the  province  for  eleven 
years ;  they  had  raised  it  from  a  few  hundred  idle,  indolent, 
and  improvident  settlers  around  the  Bay  of  Mobile,  and  along 
the  coast  west  of  that  place,  near  the  Bays  of  Biloxi  and  St. 
Louis,  to  a  flourishing  colony  of  several  thousand  souls,  many  of 
whom  were  industrious,  enterprising,  and  productive  citizens. 
In  the  year  1717,  when  the  company  took  charge,  agriculture 
had  been  neglected  and  was  almost  unknown,  except  a  few  small 
gardens  for  private  use.  The  rich  alluvions  of  the  Mississippi 
had  presented  no  attractions  for  the  indolent  settlers ;  all  had 
collected  on  the  barren  shores  from  the  Bay  of  Mobile  west- 
ward, or  had  wandered  over  the  vast  regions  in  search  of  traffick 
with  the  Indians.  Now  agriculture  had  begun  to  flourish  on  the 
fertile  alluvions  of  the  river,  capitalists  had  become  interested  in 
the  staple  products  of  the  soil,  and  considerable  portions  of  rice, 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  863.  t  Idem,  p.  263. 


A.D.  1728.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


255 


tobacco,  and  indigo  had  already  been  exported.     Eighteen 
hundred  negro  slaves  had  been  imported  from  Africa,  and  twen- 
ty-five hundred  redemptioners,  or  laborers  from  France,  had 
been  introduced,  liable  to  serve  three  years  for  those  who  paid 
the  expenses  of  their  emigration.     The  military  force  in  the 
province  had  been  augmented  from  less  than  three  hundred  to 
eight  hundred  and  fifty  troops.*     Settlements  were  formed  on 
the  Mississippi,  and  the  city  of  New  Orleans  had  become  a 
large  commercial  port.   Many  pleasant  cottages  lined  the  banks 
of  the  river  for  more  than  twenty  miles  above  the  city ;  set- 
tlements had  grown  up  on  Red  River,  and  on  the  Washita, 
at  Natchez,  and  on  the  Yazoo.     In  the  Illinois  and  Wabash 
countries  there  had  been  a  large  accession  to  the  agricultural 
population,  and  an  active  trade  had  sprung  up  from  the  Illinois 
and  Wabash  countries  to  the  ports  of  New  Orleans  and  Mobile. 
Each  settlement  had  now  been  provided  with  a  regular  gov- 
ernment for  the  administration  of  justice ;  religious  instruction 
had  been  provided  for  each  settlement ;  clergymen  and  chapels 
were  common  in  the  old  settlements,  and  missions  were  estab- 
lished in  the  new.    But  a  severe  check  to  colonial  prosperity 
was  soon  to  be  experienced. 

For  several  years  a  spirit  of  jealous  dissatisfaction  had  ap- 
peared among  several  of  the  Indian  tribes  east  of  the  Missis- 
sippi.    The  Chickasas  had  never  been  sincerely  friendly  to  the 
French,  and  were  continually  urged  to  hostilities  by  English 
:^missaries  from  Carolina.     The  Natchez,  and  other  tribes  south 
of  them,  although  in  alliance  with  the  French,  had  several  times 
wavered  in  their  friendship,  and  were  only  restrained  by  fear. 
This  state  of  feeling  among  the  tribes  had  been  observed  for 
years  by  the  commandant-general,  who  had  often  urged  upon 
the  directory  of  the  company  the  necessity  of  preparing  more 
effectually  to  protect  the  settlements.     M.  Perrier,  since  his 
appointment,  had  also  urged  upon  them  the  necessity  of  car- 
rying out  the  suggestions  of  Bienville.     The  directory,  how- 
ver,  had  disregarded  all  his  admonitions  and  plans  of  defense. 
They  deemed  his  apprehensions  as  groundless,  and  possibly 
somewhat  influenced  by  a  desire  to  increase  the  number  of 
troops  under  his  command,  in  order  to  magnify  his  own  im- 
portance and  to  acquire  a  more  active  command.f      Thus 
they  inferred  that  he  would  willingly  embroil  the  province  in 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  266.  t  Idem,  p.  870. 


356 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book    II. 


an  Indian  war,  that  he  might  display  his  military  skill  and  prow- 
ess in  conducting  it  to  a  successful  termination.  Still  M.  Per- 
rier  continued  to  warn  them  of  the  necessity  of  preparing  to 
meet  the  impending  danger.  But  his  warnings  were  unheed- 
ed. The  directory  could  see  nothing  in  the  occasional  mur- 
ders and  depredations  of  the  Indians,  more  than  had  been  com- 
mon from  the  earliest  periods  of  the  colony. 

Notwithstanding  all  the  signs  of  restless  impatience  on  the 
part  of  the  Indian  tribes,  the  French' officers  and  agents  took  no 
prudent  steps  to  soothe  their  hostile  feelings,  or  to  quiet  their 
jealous  apprehensions.  The  Indian  plainly  saw  the  rapid  strides 
of  ambition,  which  sought  to  possess  their  entire  country,  and 
which  must  ultimately,  if  not  arrested,  prove  the  destruction  of 
their  nation,  or  their  expulsion  from  the  land  of  their  fathers. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  French  appeared  to  view  the  Indians 
as  beings  without  rights,  whom  they  might  strip  of  their  lands 
and  homes  at  pleasure.  Every  aggression  on  the  part  of  the 
French  only  served  to  rouse  up  the  slumbering  vengeance  of 
the  savage,  and  to  impress  upon  him  more  firmly  the  necessity 
of  revenge,  and  the  maintenance  of  his  rights  and  his  liberty. 
The  impatience  with  which  the  Indian  beheld  his  insolent  op- 
pressor, and  the  destroyer  of  his  peace,  was  but  little  calcula- 
ted to  cause  him  to  conciliate  the  unwelcome  guests.  Such 
were  the  feelings  mutually  existing  between  the  French  and 
the  Natchez  Indians. 

The  French,  influenced  by  mercenary  motives,  had  no  for- 
bearance for  what  they  considered  insolence  in  the  Indian. 
Hence  they  became  arrogant,  domineering,  and  unjust  in  their 
demands,  and  dealt  with  them  in  no  measured  harshness. 
Trivial  offenses  and  depredations  were  punished  with  extreme 
rigor  upon  the  savage ;  but  his  demands  for  justice  against  the 
white  man  were  disregarded,  and  revenge  was  left  to  rankle 
in  his  breast.  Above  all,  the  commandant  at  Fort  Rosalie,  M. 
Chopart,  had  long  been  obnoxious  to  the  Natchez  chiefs,  and 
he,  in  turn,  took  pleasure  in  making  them  feel  his  power  when 
opportunity  offered  for  harassing  them. 

This  state  of  reciprocal  ill-will  became  known  to  the  Eng- 
lish agents  and  emissaries  from  Carolina,  who  hoped  to  see 
their  European  rivals  embroiled  with  the  numerous  tribes  east 
of  the  Mississippi.  Nothing,  of  course,  was  done  by  them  to 
prevent  a  result  so  much  desired  by  the  British  cabinet. 


A.D.  1728.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


857 


Instead  of  giving  due  attention  to  these  things,  the  company 
had  been  preparing  expeditions  to  explore  the  Missouri  River 
in  search  of  silver  and  gold  mines,  or  sending  exploring  detach- 
ments into  the  remote  western  portions  of  Louisiana.  The 
forts  near  the  sea-board,  which  were  mostly  beyond  the  danger 
of  Indian  hostilities,  employed  nearly  all  the  efficient  force  of 
the  province,  while  those  in  the  midst  of  the  disaffected  Indians 
were  in  a  decayed  state,  and  but  feebly  defended. 

Ill  this  state  of  affairs  the  Chickasas,  who  had  always  enter- 
tained a  jealous  hostility  to  the  French,  conceived  the  propri- 
ety of  an  attempt  to  exterminate  the  defenseless  colony.  For 
this  purpose,  the  chiefs  devised  a  plan  of  extermination,  and 
with  much  secrecy  and  address  engaged  several  of  the  other 
tribes  in  the  conspiracy.  The  Natchez  chiefs  engaged  with 
ardor  in  the  plan ;  so  did  many  of  the  Choctas  and  Yazoo 
tribes,  as  well  as  those  upon  the  Tensas  west  of  the  Mississippi. 
The  conspirators  attempted  to  engage  the  Northern  tribes  in  a 
similar  and  simultaneous  conspiracy  against  the  French  settle- 
ments in  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  countries.  Attempts  were 
made  also  by  the  Chickasas  to  excite  the  small  tribes  in  the 
vicinity  of  Red  River  and  north  of  the  Bayou  Iberville.  Such 
were  the  general  feelings  of  the  Indians  preceding  the  fatal  mas- 
sacre of  the  French  settlements. 

The  Chickasa  conspiracy,  however,  was  never  carried  into 
effect.  From  some  unknown  cause,  it  was  frustrated  before 
the  period  for  execution  arrived  ;  or.  as  some  suppose,  the  pe- 
riod had  not  arrived  when  the  Natchez  chiefs,  from  some  un- 
foreseen cause,  were  induced  to  anticipate  the  day.  It  is 
certain  that  the  Chickasas  were  displeased  at  their  exclusion 
from  a  participation  in  the  massacre.  They  also  suspected 
the  Choctas  of  treachery.*  Various  tales  have  been  invent- 
ed to  account  for  the  manner  in  which  the  Natchez  massa- 
cre superseded  the  Chickasa  conspiracy.  The  general  im- 
pression is,  that  the  number  of  days  to  elapse,  after  the  new 
moon,  previous  to  the  general  massacre,  was  designated  by  a 
bundle  of  reeds,  one  of  which  was  to  be  withdrawn  every  day 
by  a  chief;  and  that  each  tribe  or  village  had  this  record ;  and 
that,  by  accident  or  design,  the  bundle  at  the  Natchez  towns 
had  been  robbed  of  several  reeds,  thereby  accelerating  the  day. 
Possibly  the  Natchez  chiefs,  in  their  premature  attack,  may 

*  Martin's  Looiaiaua,  vol.  i,  p.  870,  S71. 

Vol.  I.— R 


258 


IIIBTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


have  been  instigated  by  some  new  and  unexpected  aggression  ; 
or,  possibly,  they  may  have  been  influenced  by  the  arrival  of 
a  large  supply  of  ammunition,  military  stores,  and  goods,  which 
had  been  received  at  the  company's  warehouse  near  Fort  Ro- 
salie.*  Certain  it  was  that  the  Chickasas  took  a  deep  inter- 
est in  the  success  of  the  enterprise. 

Chopart  became  more  and  more  obnoxious  to  the  Natchez 
chiefs.  His  arbitrary  and  despotic  conduct  toward  them  cher- 
ished in  the  savage  a  growing  impatience  for  revenge,  while  a 
disdainful  resentment  caused  him  to  exercise  his  brief  author- 
ity with  increasing  severity  against  the  Indians.f 

It  was  but  recently  that  Chopart  had  made  new  aggressions 
upon  the  Indians'  rights.  Early  in  the  summer,  he  had  required 
the  Indians  to  abandon  one  of  their  villages,  that  he  might  oc- 
cupy the  site  with  a  plantation.  This  was  the  village  of  the 
"  White  Apple"  chief,  which  spread  over  nearly  three  miles  in 
extent. J  Chopart  summoned  the  "sun,"  and  required  him  to 
cause  their  huts  to  be  removed  to  some  other  place,  and  their 
fields  to  be  laid  waste.  The  indignant  chief  replied,  "  that 
their  fathers,  for  many  years,  had  occupied  that  ground,  and 
that  it  was  good  for  their  children  still  to  remain  on  the  same." 
The  commandant  resorted  to  threats  of  violence  to  enforce  his 
commands,  and  the  chief  retired  and  called  a  council  to  de- 
termine the  proper  course  of  policy.  At  length,  after  a  prom- 
ise of  one  basket  of  corn  and  one  hen  for  every  cabin,  after 
the  corn  should  have  matured  and  the  fowls  were  grown,  for 
indulgence  until  that  time,  Chopart  condescended  to  grant  a 

respite  to  his  commands. 

■.•.'•.;■■■■■  « 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  272,  273. 

t  Such  had  been  the  overbearing  conduct  of  M.  Chopart,  that  the  chiefs  had  formerly 
complained  to  the  commandant-general,  M.  Perrier,  who  had  summoned  M.  Chopart  to 
New  Orleans  to  answer  for  his  conduct.  He  had  succeeded  in  explaining  matters  to 
the  governor  in  such  maimer  as  to  justify  himself  with  the  commandant-general,  who 
subsequently  reinstated  him  in  hiis  command  at  Fort  Rosalie.  On  his  return,  he  in- 
dulged in  many  vexatious  exactions  upon  the  Indians,  to  gratify  his  spite ;  and  as  a 
part  of  this  course,  demanded  the  removal  of  their  village. — See  Stoddart,  p.  49. 

X  It  was  no  uncommon  thing,  in  the  early  explorations  of  the  Spaniards  and  French, 
in  Louisiana  and  Florida,  to  see  Indian  villages  scattered  for  miles  along  a  fertile  plain, 
each  cabin  or  house  surrounded  by  extensive  fields  of  com,  pumpkins,  beans,  &.c.  De 
Soto,  in  Florida,  passed  through  some  towns,  which,  with  their  fields,  spread  out  for 
five  or  six  miles.  Since  the  encroachments  of  the  white  man,  these  scattered  villages 
are  more  rare. 

The  site  of  the  White  Apple  village  was  situated  about  twelve  miles  south  of  the 
present  city  of  Natchez,  near  the  mouth  of  Second  Creek,  and  three  miles  east  of  the 
Mississippi.  The  site  was  occupied  by  the  plantation  of  Colonel  Anthony  Hutchens, 
an  early  emigrant  to  Florida.  All  vestiges  of  Indian  industry  have  disappeared,  ex- 
cept some  mounds  in  the  vicinity. 


A.D.  1728.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


250 


Time  passed  slowly,  and  all  appeared  quiet  and  peaceable ; 
but  the  nation  was  highly  incensed  at  the  unjust  demand.  As 
the  time  approached  for  the  destruction  of  their  village,  the 
chiefs  sat  in  council,  to  devise  the  most  proper  course  for  re- 
senting the  injury  and  defending  their  rights.  It  was  deter- 
mined not  to  limit  their  revenge  to  the  obnoxious  individual, 
but  to  effect  the  total  overthrow  of  the  whole  colonv.  The 
settlement  was  to  be  destroyed ;  the  men  were  to  be  put  to 
death,  and  the  women  and  children  were  to  be  reduced  to 
slavery.  The  plan  was  to  be  confided  alone  to  the  warriors 
and  chiefs.  Runners  were  sent  to  every  village,  both  of  the 
Natchez  and  their  confederates,  with  the  signal  of  prepara- 
tion. Bundles  of  reeds  were  prepared,  each  having  an  equal 
number.  One  of  these  bundles  was  to  be  sent  to  every  village, 
with  instructions  to  keep  it  until  the  new  moon.  Then,  for  ev- 
ery day  afterward,  at  the  rising  of  the  sun,  one  reed  was  to  be 
withdrawn,  until  only  one  remained.  The  attack  was  to  be 
made  on  the  day  that  the  last  reed  was  withdrawn.  The  plan, 
thus  arranged,  awaited  only  the  fatal  day.* 

Suspicion  of  some  fatal  conspiracy  was  afloat  in  the  settle- 
ments ;  many  feared  the  rankling  vengeance  of  the  savage, 
and  various  indications  seemed  to  apprise  them  of  some  ap- 
proaching catastrophe  ;  but  they  were  unheeded  by  the  com- 
mandant of  Fort  Rosalie,  whose  avarice  and  self-will  blinded 
his  perception  of  visible  danger. 

Chopart  had  been  warned  of  the  approaching  danger ;  but 
he  affected  to  despise  it,  and  is  said  to  have  threatened  violence 
to  his  monitor.  The  settlements,  accordingly,  remained  in 
doubtful  security,  and  unprotected,  until  the  fatal  day  disclosed 
the  bloody  tragedy.  The  Indians,  under  their  respective  chiefs, 
were  prepared  to  make  the  precvaforted  attack  on  the  differ- 
ent portions  of  the  settlements.  At  the  St.  Catharine's  settle- 
ment, the  signal  was  to  be  given  by  the  "  Great  Sun"  from  Fort 
Rosalie.  The  signal  to  the  surrounding  settlements  was  to  be 
the  smoke  and  flames  of  the  fort  and  the  adjacent  buildings, 
accompanied  by  the  shouts  and  yells  of  the  victorious  warriors. 
The  corn  and  poultry  had  been  paid  for  the  respite  to  the 
devoted  village,  and  to  all  appearance  the  Indians  and  French 
were  inclined  to  mutual  friendship  and  forbearance  ;t  but  they 

*  See  Stoddart's  Louisiana,  p.  50,  51. 

t  Stoddart  states  that  the  massacre  was  arranged  to  take  place  at  the  time  of  pay> 


Ma^:.:'^'^:^ 


300 


llldTORY    OP   TUB 


[nnoK  II. 


remembered  the  decoptivo  truco  of  Bienville  six  years  belbro, 
and  now  they  were  resolved  to  improve  upon  his  example. 

Indian  tr.idition  asserts  that  the  preconcerted  massacre  was 
kept  a  profomid  secret,  confined  oidy  to  the  chiefs  and  war- 
riors, and  that  none  others  were  permitted  to  have  any  knowl- 
edge of  the  plan ;  that  the  women  especially  wore  excluded 
from  a  knowledge  of  the  conspiracy ;  that  at  length  the  wife 
of  a  chief,  or  sun,  from  various  appearances,  suspected  that 
some  momentous  enterprise  was  in  c()ntem[)lation,  and,  after 
various  artifices  and  devices,  she  succeeded  in  gleaning  from 
her  son  the  contemplated  plan  of  massacre.  She  immediately 
took  steps  to  communicate  to  the  white  men  the  imminent 
danger  which  awaited  them.  The  information  was  communi- 
cated to  the  commandant  of  Fort  Rosalie,  M.  Chopart,  who  de- 
rided the  fears  of  his  informant,  and  threatened  with  punish- 
ment those  who  should  give  currency  to  the  rumor.* 

Under  this  fatal  security,  the  whole  colony  was  left  entirely 
unguarde<i  and  unprepared  for  danger;  some  were  in  their 
houses,  some  in  the  fields,  and  others  dispersed  through  the 
settlements.  The  fort  itself  was  not  in  a  state  of  defense,  and 
tlie  garrison  was  negligent  and  unsuspicious  of  the  danger  so 
near  at  hand.  The  women  and  children,  as  usual,  were  en- 
gaged in  the  ordinary  avocations  of  domestic  employments, 
thoughtless  and  unconcerned  as  to  the  calamity  which  was 
about  to  overtake  them. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  in  the  province  until  near  the 
close  of  November,  1729.  At  length  the  fatal  day  arrived.  It 
was  the  28th  day  of  the  month.  Early  in  the  morning  the 
Great  Sun  repaired,  with  a  few  chosen  warriors,  to  Fort 
Rosalie,  and  all  were  well  armed  with  knives  and  other  con- 
cealed weapons. 

The  company  had  recently  sent  up  a  large  supply  of  pow- 
der and  lead,  and  provisions  for  the  use  of  the  post.  The  In- 
dians had  recourse  to  stratagem  to  procure  a  supply  of  am- 
munition, pretending  they  were  preparing  for  a  great  hunting 
excursion.     Before  they  set  out,  they  wished  to  purchase  a 

ing  the  tribute  to  the  commandant ;  but  it  is  not  probable  that  the  payment  of  tho  trib- 
ute would  have  been  deferred  until  the  last  of  November,  when  the  com  would  Imvu 
been  ripe  for  gathering,  iu  thia  latitude,  by  the  middle  of  September,  at  furthest.  Tlia 
probability  is,  that  the  tribute  had  been  paid  in  due  time,  to  quiet  suspicion. — Soo 
Stoddart,  p.  51. 
*  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  371 ;  and.  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  51,  53. 


A.I).  172l».] 


VALLEY  or    THE    MISHIHHII'I'I. 


'Ml 


Hiiiip'  '  oraininunition,  nn<l  tlioy  lind  l)i'ou<^'lit  corn  nnd  poultry 
to  Itiirtcr  lor  powdur  and  leiul.  lluviii^'  phu'tHl  the  giirriHon 
oil*  their  ^'usird,  a  niiinhcr  of  IndiiuiH  were  permitted  to  enter 
the  fort,  and  others  were  diBtrihiited  Jihout  the  (Munpjiny's  ware- 
house. Upon  a  certain  si^nial  from  the  Great  Sun,  the  Indians 
immediately  drew  their  concealed  weapons,  and  commenced 
the  carna^'e  by  one  simuitanooua  and  furious  massacre  of  the 
^'arrison,  and  all  who  were  in  and  near  the  warehouse.* 

Other  parties,  distributed  throuj,di  the  contiguous  settlements, 
<!arried  on  the  bloody  work  in  every  house  as  soon  as  the 
smoke  was  seen  to  rise  from  the  houses  near  the  fort. 

The  massacre  commenced  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
and  before  noon  the  whole  of  the  male  pf)pulation  of  the  French 
colony  on  St.  Catharine  (consisting  of  about  seven  hundred 
souls)  were  sleeping  the  sleep  of  death.  The  slaves  were 
spared  for  the  service  of  the  victors,  and  the  females  and  chil- 
dren were  reserved  as  prisoners  of  war.  Clujpart  fell  among 
the  first  victims ;  and,  as  the  chiefs  disdained  to  stain  their 
hands  with  his  despised  blood,  he  was  dispatched  by  the  hand 
of  a  common  Indian.  Two  mechanics,  a  tailor  and  a  car- 
penter, were  spared,  because  they  might  be  useful  to  the  In- 
dians. 

While  the  massacre  was  progressing,  the  Great  Sun  seated 
himself  in  the  spacious  warehouse  of  the  company,  and,  with 
apparent  unconcern  and  complacency,  sat  and  smoked  his  pipe 
while  his  warriors  were  depositing  the  heads  of  the  French 
garrison  in  a  pyramid  at  his  feet.  The  head  of  Chopart  was 
placed  in  the  center,  surmounting  those  of  his  officers  and 
soldiers.  So  soon  as  the  warriors  informed  the  Great  Sun 
that  the  last  Frenchman  had  ceased  to  live,  he  commanded 
the  pillage  to  commence.  The  negro  slaves  were  employed 
in  bringing  out  the  plunder  for  distribution.  The  powder 
and  military  stores  were  reserved  for  public  use  in  future 
emergencies. 

While  the  ardent  spirits  remained,  the  day  and  the  night 
alike  presented  one  continued  scene  of  savage  triumph  and 
drunken  revelry.  With  horrid  yells  they  spent  their  orgies  in 
dancing  over  the  mangled  bodies  of  their  enemies,  which  lay 
strewed  in  every  quarter  where  they  had  fallen  in  the  general 
carnage.    Here,  unburied,  they  remained  a  prey  for  dogs  and 

*  See  Martin's  Looiiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  272,  273 ;  and  Stoddart's  Sketches. 


UQ2 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[rook  II. 


hungry  vultures.  Every  vestige  of  the  houses  and  dwellings 
in  all  the  settlements  was  reduced  to  ashes.* 

Two  soldiers  only,  who  happened  to  be  absent  in  the  woods 
at  the  time  of  the  massacre,  escaped  to  bear  the  melancholy 
tidings  to  New  Orleans.  As  they  approached  the  fort  and 
heard  the  deafening  yells  of  the  savages,  and  saw  the  columns 
of  smoke  and  flame  ascending  from  the  buildings,  they  well 
judged  the  fate  of  their  countrymen.  They  concealed  them- 
selves until  they  could  procure  a  boat  or  canoe  to  descend  the 
river  to  New  Orleans,  where  they  arrived  a  few  days  after- 
ward, and  told  the  sad  story  of  the  colony  on  the  St.  Catharine. 

The  same  fate  was  shared  by  the  colony  on  the  Yazoo,  near 
Fort  St.  Peter,  and  by  those  on  the  Washita,  at  Sicily  Island, 
and  near  the  present  town  of  Monroe.  Dismay  and  terror  were 
spread  over  every  settlement  in  the  province.  New  Orleans 
was  filled  with  mourning  and  sadness  for  the  fate  of  friends  and 
countrymen. 

The  whole  number  of  victims  slain  in  this  massacre  amount- 
ed to  more  than  two  hundred  men,  besides  a  few  women  and 
some  negroes,  who  attempted  to  defend  their  masters.  Ninety- 
two  women  and  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  children  were  taken 
prisoners.  Among  the  victims  were  Father  Poisson,  the  Jesuit 
missionary ;  Laloire,  the  principal  agent  of  the  company ;  M. 
Kollys  and  son,  who  had  purchased  M.  Hubert's  interest,  and 
had  just  arrived  to  take  possession,  f 

*  Martin'i  Loaiiiana,  vol  i.,  p.  279,  873.  t  Idem,  p.  373. 


A.D.  1730.] 


VALLEY  or  THE  MISBIiidiriM. 


203 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

LOUISIANA  UNDER  "THE  WESTERN  COMPANY"  AFTER  THE  NATCHEZ 

MAS.^ACRE  :     EXTERMINATION     OF    THE    NATCHEZ    TRIDES. A.D. 

1721)  TO  1733. 

Arifumtnt.—CotiMtemtition  in  Loiiiiiant  after  tho  Natchei  Tragedy.— Tho  Oovomor, 
M.  I'urrior,  proparoa  to  invado  titu  Natchus  Country. — Loulmit  lends  on  tho  French 
Tfuopi  and  Alliei.— Loiueur  lendaontlio  ChoetAa.— Leauour  arrivea  on  tho  St.  Cath- 
arine with  Ilia  Choctil  Allies.— Tiioy  attack  tho  Natohex  Towns  aial  return  victori- 
ously.—Loubois  arrives  witli  tho  Artillery. — After  a  short  BioKC,  tho  Indians  propose 
on  Armistice. — Loubois  permits  tho  Natchez  Warriors  to  escape  him. — Krerts  a  ter- 
raced Fort  and  retires  to  New  Orleans.- Tho  Natchez  Tribes  retire  to  Black  lliver, 
and  there  Fortify  themselves.- The  Chickasila  cs|h)uso  tho  Natchez  Cause.— Kng* 
lisli  Intrigue  active  among  the  Chickasds. — Chouacas  Tribo  oxterminated  by  the 
French  and  Negro  Troops.- Nogro  Insurrection  arrested.— Military  Strength  of  the 
Province. —  Small  Uo-enforcomont  arrives  from  Franco. —  M.  Porrier  advances  his 
Forces  to  Black  River. — Invests  tho  Natchez  Stronglwld.— Negotiations  for  Capitu 
lation. — The  "  Great  Sun"  and  fifty-two  Indians  surrendered. — Perrior's  Dcmaml  re- 
fused, and  the  Cannonade  opens  again. — Tho  Besieged  abandon  tho  Fort  during  a 
dark  and  stormy  Night. — Many  aro  overtaken  and  captured. — Tho  French  Army  re- 
turn to  Now  Orleans  with  their  Prisoners. — Tho  Prisoners  aro  sold  into  West  Indian 
Slavery. — Tho  Ilemnant  of  tho  Natchez  Tribo  imbodies  on  Hod  lliver. — They  attack 
the  French  Post  at  Natchitoches,  and  are  ropuUed  with  great  Loss. — Termination  of 
the  Natchez  War. — Personal  Characteristics  of  this  Tribo. — State  of  tho  Province  at 
tho  Close  of  tho  Wor. — The  Company  resolve  to  surrender  thoir  Charter. — Tho  King's 
Proclamation  announces  its  Acceptance,  April  luth,  173S. — Uutrospcct  of  the  Prov- 
ince under  the  Company. — Tho  Crown  purchases  tho  Company's  Effects,  and  tho 
Royal  Oovoniment  is  established. 

[A.D.  1729.]  So  soon  as  the  Natchez  disaster  was  known 
at  New  Orleans,  the  whole  city  and  settlements  presented 
a  scene  of  general  commotion  and  consternation.  M.  Per- 
rier,  the  commandant-general,  made  the  most  active  prepara- 
tions for  avenging  the  loss  of  the  French  settlements  by  wa- 
ging a  war  of  extermination  against  the  tribes  concerned  in  the 
conspiracy.  A  vessel  was  immediately  dispatched  to  France 
for  troops  and  military  supplies.  Two  vessels  were  ordered 
up  the  river  as  far  as  Bayou  Tunica,  to  observe  the  movements 
of  the  savages  and  to  afford  protection  to  such  individuals  as 
may  have  escaped  the  tomahaM^k  and  scalping-knife  in  any 
of  the  settlements.  Couriers  were  dispatched  to  Mobile,  to 
Red  River,  and  to  Fort  Chartres,  in  the  Illinois  country,  to 
summon  the  several  commanders  to  prepare  for  co-operation 
with  their  respective  commands.  Emissaries  and  agents  were 
sent  to  the  Choctas,  and  to  all  the  tribes  in  alliance  with  the 


364 


HISTORY  OF   TUE 


[book  II. 


French  from  the  head  waters  of  the  Alabama  to  the  Ciiinber- 
hiiid,  and  even  to  the  Illinois  tribes.  Every  house  in  the  city, 
and  every  plantation,  was  furnished  with  arms  and  ammunition 
lor  defense  out  of  the  company's  store-house ;  the  city  was  for- 
tified, and  placed  in  a  state  of  complete  military  defense  against 
any  possible  attack  of  savages.* 

The  brave  and  enterprising  Lesueur,  ever  ready  to  engage 
in  remote  excursions,  had  gone  to  rouse  and  organize  the  Choc- 
tas  on  the  Tombigby  for  an  immediate  campaign,  while  M. 
Perrier  prepared  to  march  with  the  troops  drawn  from  the 
posts  and  settlements  near  Mobile  and  Red  River.  Three 
hundred  regular  troops  were  taken  from  the  posts,  and  three 
hundred  militia  from  the  lower  settlements  joined  his  standard 
for  the  invasion  of  the  Natchez  country.  But  just  as  M.  Ter- 
rier was  about  to  take  up  the  line  of  march  for  the  hostile  towns, 
his  attention  was  suddenly  arrested  by  an  alarming  danger 
close  at  hand.  The  late  disaster,  and  the  contemplated  (lei)art- 
ure  of  ihe  troops  and  most  of  the  able-bodied  men  from  the  set- 
tlements, had  prompted  some  of  the  slaves  on  the  large  planta- 
tions to  improve  tlie  occasion  by  an  attempt  to  overi)()wer  the 
whites  and  assert  their  liberty.  To  suppress  the  threatened 
insurrection,  and  to  punish  the  instigators  of  the  plot,  M.  Per- 
rier was  compelled  to  defer  his  departure  for  a  few  days. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Chevalier  M.  Loubois,  with  the  main 
body  of  troops,  set  out  for  the  Natchez  country,  in  order  to 
effect  a  junction  with  Lesueur  and  his  Chocta  allies  from 
the  east.  As  he  proceeded  northward,  he  received  re-enforce- 
ments at  Baton  Rouge  and  Point  Coupee,  besides  a  few  Tunica 
Indians  in  the  vicinity  of  Red  River. 

[A.D.  1730.]  As  Loubois  advanced  toward  the  Natchez 
towns,  he  was  met  by  two  Natchez  chiefs  with  proposals  for 
peace ;  though,  doubtless,  their  real  object  was  to  spy  out  his 
forces,  and  to  devise  some  plan  of  treachery.  Their  terms 
were  extraordinary  and  arrogant,  and  the  assurance  with  which 
they  were  urged  induced  M.  Loubois  to  advance  cautiously, 
lest  he  might  be  overpowered  by  their  superior  numbers. 

As  the  condition  of  peace,  with  the  surrender  of  their  pris- 
oners and  a  general  amnesty,  they  demanded  no  less  than  two 
hundred  barrels  of  powder,  two  thousand  flints,  four  thousand 
bullets,  two  hundred  knives,  and  an  equal  number  of  axes,  hoes, 

*  Martin'*  Loai»iaua,  vol.  i.,  p.  S76. 


A.D.  1730.] 


VALLEY    OF    THF.    MIBHISSII'I'I. 


265 


shirts,  coiits,  and  pieces  of  ginghams ;  besides  twenty  laced 
coats,  twenty  laced  hats  with  plumes,  twenty  barrels  ol  brandy, 
and  as  many  of  wine.* 

Loubois  could  view  the  extraordinary  proposition  in  n<»  oth- 
er light  than  a  bold  attemj)t  at  defiance  against  the  French 
forces,  and  lie  continued  his  march  with  caution,  awaiting  re- 
enforcements  from  below. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  ever-successful  Lesueur  had  won  the 
Choctas  to  his  aid,  and,  advancing  from  the  Tombigby  with 
six  hundred  warriors,  had  augmented  his  force  near  Pearl  Iliver 
to  twelve  hundred  auxiliaries.  With  this  formidable  body  of 
allies  he  arrived  upon  the  St.  Catharine  on  the  morning  of  the 
28th  of  January.  Here  he  encamped,  vainly  to  await  the  ar- 
rival of  the  forces  under  M.  Loubois,  who  had  not  yet  entered 
the  Natchez  country. 

The  Indian  runners  soon  brought  intelligence  that  the  Natch- 
ez chiefs  were  utterly  ignorant  of  the  arrival  of  the  Chocta  war- 
riors from  the  east,  aid  were  spending  the  night  in  carous- 
als and  dancing.  This  intelligence  coming  to  the  ears  of  the 
warriors,  they  became  impatient,  and,  disregarding  all  restraint, 
next  morning  about  daybreak,  in  spite  of  Lesucur's  urgent  en- 
treaties, they  fell  upon  the  Natchez  villages  with  great  fury. 
After  a  conflict  of  three  hours  they  returned  to  camp,  bringing, 
as  the  trophies  of  their  prowess,  sixty  Indian  scalps,  and  eigh- 
teen Indian  prisoners,  besides  fifty-one  women  and  children, 
and  two  men  rescued  from  captivity.  The  men  were  the  two 
mechanics  who  had  been  spared  in  the  general  massacre  of 
November. 

The  Choctas  also  recovered  from  captivity  one  hundred  and 
six  negro  slaves.  Their  loss  in  this  affair,  having  found  their 
enemies  unprepared  for  defense,  was  only  two  warriors  killed 
and  eight  wounded.f  After  skirmishing  a  few  days,  most  of 
the  warriors  dispersed,  and  returned  to  their  towns. 

The  Natchez  warriors,  now  apprised  of  the  hostile  move- 
ments against  them,  lost  no  further  time  in  idle  carousal,  but 
proceeded  with  great  diligence  to  secure  their  women  and 
children  by  a  strongly-fortified  camp.  All  their  military  art 
was  put  in  requisition,  and  all  the  available  labor,  to  secure 
themselves  against  the  attacks  of  the  Chocta  warriors  and  the 
strong  military  force  advancing  from  New  Orleans. 


*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  277. 


t  Idem,  p.  278. 


266 


IlISTOBY   OP   THE 


[book  II. 


Tho  interval  for  defensive  operations  was  short ;  for  in  ten 
days,  Loubois,  with  a  force  of  fourteen  hundred  men,  including 
French  and  Indians,  appeared  before  the  Indian  strong-hold. 
Yet,  by  this  time,  the  Natchez  warriors  had  intrenched  them- 
selves strongly,  and  were  determined  upon  a  brave  resistance. 
The  besieging  force  was  nearly  eleven  hundred  Frenchmen,  be- 
sides three  hundred  Indians,  and  such  of  the  Choctas  under  Le- 
sueur  as  still  remained  to  take  part  in  the  contest. 

The  fort  was  regularly  invested ;  trenches  were  opened,  and 
the  artillery  was  planted  upon  the  batteries.  But  on  the  sev- 
enth day  of  the  investment,  and  after  many  skirmishes  by  the 
Indian  allies,  in  which  the  Natchez  warriors  fought  with  great 
desperation,  the  besieged  sent  a  flag  with  propositions  for  a 
conditional  surrender  of  prisoners. 

The  proposition  stipulated  that  the  Natchez  chiefs  would 
surrender  thr^  remaining  French  prisoners,  to  the  number  of 
more  than  two  hundred  souls,  provided  the  artillery  were  re- 
moved from  before  the  fort  and  the  siege  abandoned.  At  the 
same  time,  they  declared  that  a  refusal  to  meet  their  proposi- 
tion should  be  followed  by  the  immediate  destruction  of  all 
their  prisoners  by  fire. 

In  order  to  preserve  the  livfes  of  the  helpless  victims  still  in 
their  power,  Loubois  consented  to  accede  to  their  terms.  A 
suspension  of  hostilities  for  ten  days  was  agreed  upon,  for  the 
purpose  of  conducting  the  negotiations. 

Yet  Loubois  designed  to  wreak  his  vengeance  upon  the  hos- 
tile Indians  so  soon  as  the  prisoners  should  have  been  secured. 
As  yet,  but  little  damage  had  been  effected  by  the  artillery, 
although  eleven  field-pieces  were  at  his  command.  The  en- 
gineers were  inexperienced,  and  his  supply  of  ammunition  had 
become  nearly  exhausted.  Meanwhile,  he  was  exerting  every 
means  to  hasten  forward  a  supply  of  ammunition  and  military 
stores  from  New  Orleans. 

The  Indians,  suspecting  treachery  on  the  part  of  the  French, 
resolved  to  improve  the  occasion  during  the  suspension  of  hos- 
tilities, and  provide  for  their  own  escape. 

At  length,  on  the  25th  of  February,  negotiations  had  been 
concluded.  The  artillery  had  been  removed,  the  batteries  de- 
molished, and  the  prisoners  were  to  be  surrendered  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  in  front  of  the  fort. 

During  the  night  of  the  25th,  the  Natchez  chiefs  and  war- 


A.D.  1730.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


ao"? 


riors,  with  their  women  and  children,  together  with  their  plun- 
der and  personal  effects,  silently  retired  from  their  intrench, 
ments,  leaving  a  small  guard  with  the  prisoners  until  daybreak, 
and  before  morning  they  had  crossed  the  river  and  were  be- 
yond pursuit.  M.  Perrier  found  the  prisoners  in  the  fort  agree- 
ably to  the  treaty,  but  the  enemy  had  fled.  The  French  were 
astonished  at  the  dextrous  manceuver,  but  it  was  useless  to 
pursue  the  fugitives. 

A  few  days  afterward,  M.  Loubois  advanced  to  the  bluff  on 
the  bank  of  the  river  and  commenced  a  terraced  fort,  which 
was  supplied  with  cannon  and  munitions,  and  a  garrison  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty  men.*  This  was  the  beginning  of  the 
terraced  Fort  Rosalie,  the  remains  of  which  are  still  visible  on 
the  brink  of  the  bluff,  just  below  the  city  of  Natchez.  After  a 
military  occupancy  of  nearly  seventy  years  by  the  troops  of 
France,  Great  Britain,  Spain,  and  the  United  States  successive- 
ly, this  fort  was  finally  abandoned  about  the  year  1800. 

Having  left  Fort  Rosalie  in  command  of  his  lieutenant,  M. 
Loubois  dismissed  his  Indian  allies,  and  returned  with  the 
Southern  troops  to  New  Orleans,  where  he  delivered  the  res- 
cued prisoners  into  the  arms  of  their  sympathizing  friends. 

The  further  prosecution  of  the  Natchez  war  was  deferred 
until  re-enforcements  and  supplies  should  have  arrived  from 
France.  Although  hostilities  for  the  present  were  suspended, 
the  Indians  were  well  assured  in  their  own  minds  that  a  ter- 
rible vengeance  was  still  meditated  against  them.  To  escape 
the  fury  of  their  enemies,  they  determined  to  abandon  their 
homes  and  their  country,  with  the  bones  and  ashes  of  their 
ancestors,  and  seek  safety  and  protection  among  their  red 
brethren  west  of  the  Mississippi.  This  vengeance  was  the 
more  to  be  dreaded,  since  the  French  had  succeeded  in  secur- 
ing the  alliance  of  several  powerful  tribes  of  the  South,  as  well 
as  those  upon  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  rivers. 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  whole  tribe  resolved  to  dis- 
perse from  the  eastern  side  of  the  Mississippi.  The  largest 
portion,  led  by  the  Great  Sun  and  the  principal  chiefs,  sought  an 
asylum  and  a  place  of  defense  upon  the  Lower  Washita,  on  "the 
point"  between  Little  River  and  the  Washita,  just  below  the 
mouth  of  Little  River,  where  the  Washita  assumes  the  name 
of  Black  River.    On  the  peninsula  rises  a  lofty  terraced  mound 

*  Stoddarf  s  Sketches  of  LoaiBiana,  p.  58.    Alao,  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  279. 


I 


268 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  II. 


of  earth,  surrounded  at  irregular  distances,  from  three  to  six 
hundred  yards,  with  many  smaller  mounds  and  embankments, 
which  are  the  remains  of  the  Natchez  earthworks  in  their  first 
retreat.  The  whole  area  embraced  in  these  remains  is  prob- 
ably not  short  of  four  hundred  acres,  comprising,  besides  the 
large  mound,  twelve  smaller  ones.  This  point,  when  securely 
fortified  by  the  Indians,  must  have  been  one  of  the  strongest 
Indian  fortresses  ever  known  to  white  men;  and  here  the 
Natchez  "  suns,"  with  the  flower  of  their  nation,  determined  to 
make  a  stand  to  meet  the  coming  storm.*  Yet  other  portions 
of  the  tribe  sought  an  asylum  among  the  Chickasas,  who  were 
willing  to  espouse  their  cause.f 

[A.D.  1731.]  It  was  not  long  before  the  warlike  Chickasas, 
urged  by  their  Natchez  allies  and  refugees,  began  their  prep- 
arations to  meet  the  vengeance  of  the  French  in  defense  of 
their  friends ;  and  the  English  of  Carolina  did  not  long  with- 
hold their  counsel  from  the  wavering  Chickasas. 

The  jealousy  of  England  toward  the  French  colonies  in  Lou- 
isiana had  never  slept.  Although  domestic  troubles  between 
the  people  and  the  proprietaries  of  Carolina  had  given  the 
French  a  temporary  exemption  from  English  intrigue  among 
the  Chickas&s  and  some  of  the  more  southern  tribes,  yet  the 
English  traders  and  emissaries  in  the  ChickasA  nation  were 
ever  ready  to  seize  any  occasion  to  annoy  the  French.  AflTairs 
in  Carolina  had  now  been  settled,  except  collisions  on  the  South 
with  the  Spaniards  of  Florida  and  their  Indian  allies.  Treaties 
of  peace  and  amity  had  been  concluded  with  the  tribes  of  the 
interior,  as  far  as  the  Muskhogees,  or  Creeks.  During  the  past 
year,  the  proprietaries  had  sold  out  their  interest  to  the  crdwn, 
and  a  royal  governor  had  been  duly  installed  over  Carolina. 

*  This  point,  at  the  junction  of  the  V^ashita  and  Little  River,  is  a  remarkable  point, 
such  as  was  generally  termed  by  the  French  "  Trois  Rivieres,"  or  three  rivers ;  be- 
cause, unlike  the  ordinary  confluence  of  two  streams,  it  presents  the  appearance  of 
three  rivers  coming  together.  The  union  of  the  Washita  and  Little  River  forms  Black 
River,  which  immediately  receives  the  Tensas  from  the  east.  Thus  three  rivers  unite 
to  form  the  fourth.    These  are  all  deep  and  wide  rivers. 

The  principal  central  mound,  or  terrace,  is  about  one  hundred  yards  long  and  fifty  wide 
at  the  base.  It  rises  as  a  pyramid  to  the  height  of  thirty  feet,  then  recedes,  with  a 
terrace  on  every  side,  and  rises  more  than  thirty  feet  higher  in  a  conical  form.  Mtyor 
Stoddart,  who  examined  it  in  1804,  estimated  the  elevation  of  the  principal  summit  at 
eighty  feet.  The  author  viewed  it  in  1844,  when,  having  been  cleared  of  the  trees  and 
undergrowth,  it  was  in  cultivation.  The  traces  of  circumvallation  are  very  evident,  and 
the  smaller  mounds  stand  around  at  unequal  distances,  varying  from  two  hundred  to 
six  hundred  yards  from  the  central  turret. 

t  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  880-S83.    Also,  Stoddart'a  Sketches,  p.  58. 


A.I 

N( 
th! 
th( 
all 


■*>r 


A.D.  1731.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


269 


No  sooner  had  the  royal  government  been  fully  established, 
than  it  attempted,  by  treaties  of  peace  and  alliance,  to  convert 
the  tribes  on  the  Western  frontiers  of  Carolina  into  subjects  and 
allies  of  Great  Britain. 

"  Early  in  the  year  1730,  Sir  Alexander  Cummings,  a  special 
envoy,  guided  by  Indian  traders  to  the  Keowee  River,  sum- 
moned a  general  convention  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Cherokee  na- 
tion to  meet  at  Nequassee,  in  the  Valley  of  the  Tennessee. 
They  came  together  in  the  month  of  April,  and  were  told  that 
King  George  was  their  sovereign."*  English  traders  had  al- 
ready established  themselves  among  the  Chickasas,  who  also 
became  the  steadfast  allies  of  the  English.  This  relation  to 
England  necessarily  implied  a  settled  hostility  to  the  French. 

Preparations  for  prosecuting  the  Natchez  war  engaged  a 
large  share  of  M.  Perrier's  attention,  and  he  lost  no  opportu- 
nity of  urging  the  matter  before  the  company.  Yet  the  whole 
effective  force  in  the  province,  at  this  time,  consisted  of  only  six 
hundred  and  fifty  French  troops  and  two  hundred  Swiss  mer- 
cenaries, distributed  in  ten  different  forts  and  military  posts. 
The  militia  of  the  province,  exclusive  of  the  Illinois  country, 
amounted  to  eight  hundred  men.f  These  comprised  the  whole 
available  force  with  which  M.  Perrier  was  to  carry  on  his 
contemplated  war  of  extermination.  The  Indian  allies  would 
augment  the  whole  to  nearly  two  thousand  men  and  warriors. 

In  the  mean  time,  a  new  danger  had  sprung  up  at  home,  in 
the  midst  of  the  settlements  near  New  Orleans.  This  difficulty 
proceeded  from  their  own  jealousy  and  imprudence.  Highly 
susceptible  to  imaginary  indications  of  savage  hostility  since 
the  Natchez  tragedy,  the  French  had  suspected  the  fidelity  of 
the  Chouacas,  a  small  tribe  of  Indians  inhabiting  the  country 
between  the  English  Turn  and  Lake  Barataria,  below  New 
Orleans.  Believing  them  in  secret  alliance  with  the  Chicka- 
sas, they  deemed  it  necessary  to  exterminate  them,  in  order  to 
avoid  their  enmity.  For  this  purpose,  a  body  of  negro  slaves 
were  armed  and  drilled  to  march  against  this  devoted  tribe. 
The  negroes  were  accordingly  led  against  the  defenseless  vil- 
lages and  settlements  of  the  unsuspecting  natives,  who,  taken 
by  surprise,  were  involved  in  one  general  and  indiscriminate 
massacre  of  men,  women,  and  children. 

*  Bancroft's  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  338. 
t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  281,  S69. 


270 


HISTORY  OF   THE 


[book  II. 


This  bloody  work  completed,  the  negroes,  well  pleased  with 
their  new  calling,  were  loth  to  resign  the  musket  for  the  hoe. 
,At  length  it  was  ascertained  that  they  had  been  planning  an 
actual  insurrection  and  massacre  of  the  white  settlements  near 
New  Orleans.  But  a  timely  discovery  of  the  plot,  and  the 
prompt  execution  of  the  ringleaders  and  prominent  abettors, 
sufficed  to  prevent  the  contemplated  tragedy.* 

In  the  mean  time,  M.  Perrier  had  ordered  a  requisition  of 
troops  and  militia  for  the  campaign  against  the  Natchez  strong- 
hold on  Black  River.  He  had  issued  his  proclamation  calling 
out  every  able-bodied  man,  and  conjuring  them  to  arm  and 
equip  themselves  in  readiness  to  join  his  standard  in  the  con- 
templated campaign. 

Expecting  re-enforcements  from  France,  the  people  of  New 
Orleans  were  highly  rejoiced,  on  the  10th  of  August,  upon  hear- 
ing the  arrival  of  one*  of  the  company's  ships  off  the  Balize, 
with  troops  and  supplies  for  the  colonies,  under  the  command 
of  M.  Perrier  de  Salvert,  brother  of  the  commandant-general. 
But  the  re-enforcement  was  small,  and  the  aid  inefficient.  The 
whole  number  of  troops  was  only  three  companies  of  marines, 
comprising  one  hundred  and  eighty  men.  These,  with  the  reg- 
ular troops  maintained  in  the  province,  amounted  to  less  than 
one  thousand  men ;  a  small  force  with  which  to  garrison  at 
least  five  or  six  forts,and  protect  numerous  remote  and  exposed 
settlements. 

The  commandant-general  was  highly  mortified  at  this  small 
re-enforcement ;  yet  he  determined  to  prosecute  a  vigorous 
campaign  for  the  chastisement  of  the  Natchez  warriors  on 
Black  River.  He  sought  aid  in  person  from  the  friendly 
tribes  near  Fort  Conde,  and  among  the  Choctas.  He  then  re- 
turned to  New  Orleans,  and  completed  his  levy  of  the  militia ; 
but  the  whole  number  of  the  enrollment  from  the  Wabash  to 
Mobile  did  not  exceed  eight  hundred  men.  These  would  yield 
a  small  effective  force  in  actual  service  in  prosecuting  a  war 
in  the  heart  of  an  enemy's  country,  and  in  the  midst  of  power- 
ful tribes.  By  the  middle  of  November,  the  whole  number  of 
troops  mustered  into  service  amounted  to  six  hundred  and  fifty, 
including  regulars  and  volunteers,  leaving  only  a  small  garri- 
son in  each  of  the  important  forts. 

The  Natchez  refugees  and  the  hostile  Chickasas,  during  the 
past  year,  had  lost  no  opportunity  of  harassing  the  settlements 

*  Martin's  Loaisiana,  vol  i.,  p.  963. 


or 


A.D.  1732.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


271 


within  their  reach.  Every  Frenchman  who  fell  into  their 
hands  upon  the  river,  or  near  any  remote  settlement,  suffered 
the  most  barbarous  and  cruel  tortures.  Such  had  been  the 
dangers  and  horrors  of  the  river  route,  that,  for  a  time,  the  riv- 
er trade  and  intercourse  had  been  almost  abandoned,  and  the 
Illinois  settlements  were  virtually  cut  off  from  Lower  Louisi- 
ana. Many  persons  captured  by  the  Natchez  warriors  upon 
the  river  had  been  burned  at  the  stake  with  the  cruel  tortures 
of  slow  fire. 

On  the  15th  of  November,  the  army,  six  hundred  and  fifty  in 
number,  left  New  Orleans  for  the  strong-hold  of  the  Natchez 
tribe  on  Black  River.  On  the  way,  they  were  joined  by  three 
hundred  and  fifty  Indian  warriors,  increasing  the  entire  force 
to  one  thousand  men. 

[A.D.  1732.]  Early  in  January  the  army  reached  the  mouth 
of  Black  River,  and  proceeded  slowly  up  its  broad  and  gentle 
stream.  On  the  20th  of  January  they  came  in  sight  of  the  en- 
emy's principal  fort.  The  troops  were  disembarked,  and  the 
fort  was  invested.  On  the  following  day  the  field-pieces  and 
artillerists  were  landed,  and  the  siege  was  regularly  opened. 
For  three  days  the  besieged  made  a  spirited  resistance ;  but 
on  the  25th  a  flag  of  truce  was  suspended  from  the  fort,just  as 
the  artillery  was  prepared  to  open  upon  it ;  yet  M.  Perrier  re- 
jected all  propositions  unless  the  "  suns"  and  war-chiefs  were 
delivered  into  his  hands,  and  threatened  utter  destruction  to 
all  in  case  of  refusal.  At  length,  after  a  protracted  negotia- 
tion, the  Indians  surrendered  the  Great  Sun  and  one  war- 
chief;  but  M.  Perrier  refused  to  extend  quarters  to  the  tribes 
unless  others  were  also  surrendered.  Not  being  in  a  situa- 
tion to  dictate  terms,  they  at  length  consented  to  surrender 
sixty-five  men  and  about  two  hundred  women  and  children, 
upon  condition  that  their  lives  should  be  spared.  But  these 
sternly  refused  to  leave  their  intrenchments  unless  the  artil- 
lery was  withdrawn  from  before  the  fort;  they  likewise  de- 
manded that  the  Indian  allies,  who  were  guarding  the  avenues 
of  escape,  should  also  be  withdrawn.  These  demands  were 
refused  by  the  French  commander,  and  the  artillery  opened  a 
furious  cannonade  against  the  works ;  but  it  was  soon  silenced 
by  heavy  rain,  which  continued  until  night,  when  clouds  and 
wind  thickened  to  a  tempest.  Soon  after  dark,  it  was  ascer- 
tained that  the  enemy  were  abandoning  their  strong-hold  under 


272 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


the  shelter  of  the  tempestuous  night.  They  were  now  making 
their  escape  up  Little  River,  and  through  the  dense  forests  and 
swamps  toward  Catahoola  Lake.  The  Indian  allies  were  sent 
in  rapid  pursuit,  and  they  at  length  captured  about  one  hun- 
dred of  the  fugitives.  Further  pursuit  was  abandoned  by  M. 
Perrier,  and  he  proceeded  next  day  to  demolish  the  outworks 
of  the  deserted  fort.  Soon  afterward  the  Indian  allies  were 
dismissed,  and  the  French  commander  prepared  to  return  with 
his  army  and  his  prisoners  to  New  Orleans.  He  arrived  in 
the  city  on  the  5th  of  February,  accompanied  by  four  hundred 
and  twenty-seven  captives  of  the  Natchez  tribe,  among  whom 
were  the  Great  Sun  and  several  principal  war-chiefs.* 

The  Great  Sun  and  his  companions  were  soon  afterward 
shipped  to  St.  Domingo  and  sold  as  slaves.  Such  was  the  ter- 
mination of  this  expedition,  and  such  was  the  fate  of  the  Great 
Sun  and  nearly  half  of  his  nation.  Although  in  two  campaigns 
they  had  lost  many  of  their  tribe  by  captivity  and  death,  yet 
nearly  one  half  of  the  entire  nation  remained ;  but  being  dis- 
persed in  detached  parties,  they  were  compelled  to  seek  safety 
from  the  vengeance  of  the  French.  Some  retired  west  of  the 
Washita,  some  to  Red  River,  and  some  joined  the  Chickasas 
east  of  the  Mississippi.  Nearly  three  hundred  individuals,  in- 
cluding seventy  warriors,  had  retired  to  the  region  west  of 
Catahoola  Lake,  and  others  passed  up  the  Washita.  One  chief, 
with  forty  warriors,  had  gone  to  join  the  Chickasas,  taking  with 
them  their  women  and  children.  The  Yazoos  and  Coroas, 
tribes  of  the  Natchez  confederacy,  were  still  able  to  bring  a  few 
warriors  into  the  field.f 

Although  reduced  and  dispersed,  the  Natchez  warriors  had 
not  been  conquered.  A  few  months  served  to  recover  them 
from  their  late  reverses,  and  they  still  breathed  vengeance 
against  their  destroyers ;  hence  the  Natchez  war  was  not  yet 
terminated,  and  the  invincible  courage  of  the  warriors  could  be 
subdued  only  by  extermination. 

Toward  the  close  of  summer,  the  warriors,  who  had  retired 
from  the  strong-hold  upon  Black  River  and  Catahoola  Lake, 
with  other  wandering  bands  of  the  dispersed  tribes,  collected 
into  one  body  near  the  remote  settlements  of  Natchitoches,  on 
Red  River.  Here  they  determined  to  make  another  bold  stand 
against  their  French  enemies.     Their  united  force  comprised 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  287.  t  Idem. 


A.D.  1732.] 


VALLEY    OF    Till:    MlddlrfJKi'l. 


273 


about  two  hundred  warriors,  burning  with  revenge  for  their 
disasters  at  Natchez  and  on  Blaci(  River,  lor  the  loss  of  their 
Great  Suns  and  chiefs,  as  well  as  their  wives  and  children, 
who  had  now  been  sold  into  hopeless  slavery  in  St.  Doniingo. 
Their  first  operations  were  directed  against  the  French  posts 
and  settlements  at  Natchitoches. 

The  post  of  Natchitoches  was  commanded  by  St.  Denys,  a 
bold  and  intrepid  officer,  of  great  experience  in  Indian  affairs. 
The  hostile  warriors  designed  the  utter  destruction  of  this  re 
mote  post  and  settlement ;  but  St.  Denys,  apprised  of  their  de 
signs  and  movements,  had  made  ample  preparation  for  the  de 
fense  of  his  post.     He  had  re-enforced  his  garrison  by  the  en 
listment  of  a  few  Spaniards,  and  others  willing  to  serve  under 
his  command  ;  the  fort  was  repaired,  and  placed  in  a  state  of 
complete  dpfense ;  at  the  same  time,  having  secured  the  aid  o 
a  body  of  friendly  Indians  from  the  neighboring  tribes,  he  now 
deemed  himself  able  to  withstand  any  assault  which  might  be 
made  by  the  hostile  warriors. 

Nor  was  he  long  in  suspense  as  to  their  movements.  The 
Natchez  warriors  at  length  approached  the  post,  and  made  a 
furious  assault  upon  the  works ;  but,  after  a  hard-fought  battle 
of  several  hours,  they  were  repulsed  with  great  loss  by  the  vig- 
orous resistance  of  the  garrison.  Failing  in  the  attack  upon 
the  fortified  post,  they  retired  to  wreak  their  vengeance  upon 
the  Natchitoches  Indians,  a  weak  tribe  in  the  vicinity,  who 
were  in  alliance  with  the  French.  The  Natchitoches  village, 
being  deserted,  was  entered  by  the  hostile  warriors,  who  pro- 
ceeded forthwith  to  fortify  it  as  a  strong-hold  for  future  defense. 

These  movements  were  closely  observed  by  the  vigilant  St. 
Denys,  and  he  lost  no  time  in  his  preparations  to  dislodge  them 
from  their  new  position.  Having  re-enforced  his  detachment 
by  volunteers,  and  a  few  more  friendly  Indians  from  the  regions 
south  of  Natchitoches,  he  advanced  to  the  attack  of  the  Natchez 
intrenchments.  By  a  vigorous  assault,  the  outworks  were  car- 
ried by  storm,  and  the  whole  fortress  was  soon  in  possession  of 
the  assailants.  The  Natchez  warriors  made  a  vigorous  resist- 
ance, during  which  ninety-two  of  their  braves,  including  all 
of  their  head  chiefs,  were  slain.  The  remainder,  overpowered 
by  the  numbers  and  impetuosity  of  the  French  and  their  allies, 
escaped  by  flight. 

Thus  St.  Denys,  with  his  limited  resources,  by  his  indomita- 

VoL.  I.-S 


274 


IIISTURY    OP   TUB 


[buuk  II. 


ble  energy  and  courage  in  this  brilliant  achievement,  had  ac- 
complished more  in  bringing  the  Natchez  war  to  a  close  than 
the  comtnnndant-general,  with  the  whole  resources  of  the  prov- 
ince. This  was,  in  fact,  the  closing  scene  in  the  war,  and  the 
blow  which  completed  the  final  dispersion  and  annihilation  of 
the  Natchez  Indians  as  a  distinct  tribe. 

[A.D.  1733.]  The  scattered  remnants  of  the  tribe  sought 
an  asylum  among  the  Chickas&s  and  other  tribes  who  were 
hostile  to  the  French.  Since  that  time,  the  individuality  of  the 
Natchez  tribe  has  been  swallowed  up  in  the  nations  with 
whom  they  were  incorporated.  Yet  no  tribe  has  left  so  proud 
a  memorial  of  their  courage,  their  independent  spirit,  and  their 
contempt  of  death  in  defense  of  their  rights  and  liberties.  The 
city  of  Natchez  is  their  monument,  standing  upon  the  field  of 
their  glory.  Such  is  the  brief  history  of  the  Natchez  Indians, 
who  are  now  considered  extinct.  In  refinement  and  intelli- 
gence, they  were  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  any  other  tribe 
north  of  Mexico.  In  courage  and  stratagem,  they  were  infe- 
rior to  none.  Their  form  was  noble  and  commanding ;  their 
stature  was  seldom  under  six  feet,  and  their  persons  were 
straight  and  athletic.  Their  countenance  indicated  more  in- 
telligence than  is  commonly  found  in  savages.  The  head  was 
compressed  from  the  os  frontis  to  the  occiput,  so  that  the  fore- 
head appeared  high  and  retreating,  while  the  occiput  was  com- 
pressed almost  in  a  line  with  the  neck  and  shoulders.  This 
peculiarity,  as  well  as  their  straight,  erect  form,  is  ascribed  to 
the  pressure  of  bandages  during  infancy.  Some  of  the  remain- 
ing individuals  of  the  Natchez  tribe  were  in  the  town  of  Natch- 
ez as  late  as  the  year  1782,  or  more  than  half  a  century  after 
the  Natchez  massacre.* 

To  the  great  joy  of  the  whole  province,  a  partial  and  tem- 
porary peace  with  the  Indian  tribes  now  succeeded.  For  three 
years,  the  whole  population  had  been  in  a  state  of  continual 
alarm  and  apprehension.  Every  thing  had  presented  the  ap- 
pearance of  hostile  array  and  military  parade.  The  troops  in 
the  province  having  been  insufficient  for  the  protection  of  the 

*  The  venerable  Christopher  Miller,  of  Natchez,  remembers  to  have  seen  a  number 
of  Natchez  warriom  in  the  village  of  Natohez  as  late  as  the  year  1782,  during  the 
Spanish  dominion.  He  had  also  seen  several  of  them  previous  to  that  time,  at  the  post 
of  Arkansas,  on  the  Arkansas  River,  under  Spanish  occupancy.  He  testifies  to  their 
commanding  form  and  noble  stature,  no  less  than  to  their  remarkably  lofty  and  retreat* 
mg  forehead, 


A.D.  1733.] 


VALLEY    OT    TUB    MISdIdSIPPI. 


275 


settlements  and  remote  posts,  and  at  the  same  time  to  keep 
down  the  rebellious  spirit  of  the  slaves,  the  population  was 
drained  of  its  most  efficient  members  to  fill  the  ranks  of  dis* 
tant  expeditions,  leaving  the  settlements  at  the  mercy  of  the 
small  tribes  in  their  immediate  vicinity.  This  state  of  things 
was  now,  fortunately,  terminated  for  a  time,  and  the  respite 
was  essentially  necessary  for  the  safety  of  the  province. 

But  the  company  had  been  involved  in  enormous  expenses 
in  conducting  the  military  defense  of  the  settlements,  and  in 
prosecuting  the  Natchez  war.  Their  losses,  by  Indian  depre- 
dations at  Natchez  and  other  points,  in  the  first  outbreak  of 
hostilities,  had  also  been  great.  The  disturbance  of  harmony 
with  other  remote  tribes,  consequent  upon  the  Natchez  war, 
was  such  as  precluded  any  profitable  trade  with  them,  and  di- 
minished  the  success  of  trade  at  the  remote  posts.  This  state 
of  things,  following  upon  the  disasters  consequent  upon  Law's 
failure,  alarmed  the  directory,  who,  believing  that  they  were 
not  secure  from  similar  disasters  in  future,  determined  to  sur- 
render their  charter  into  the  hands  of  the  crown,  and  abandon 
the  further  prosecution  of  their  scheme.  Obedient  to  the  wish- 
es of  the  "Company  of  the  Indies,"  who  could  invest  their  cap- 
ital more  profitably  in  traffick  and  conquest  upon  the  coasts  of 
Guinea  and  Hindostan,  they  had  petitioned  the  king  to  permit 
them  to  surrender  their  charter  and  retire  from  the  American 
wilderness.  The  petition  was  rieadily  granted,  and  the  king 
had  issued  his  proclamation,  declaring  the  whole  province  of 
Louisiana  free  to  all  his  subjects,  with  equal  privileges  and 
rights  as  to  trade  and  commerce.  This  proclamation  was  is- 
sued on  the  10th  day  of  April,  1732,  and  had  taken  effect  from 
its  date.  From  this  time  the  Western  Company,  which  was,  in 
fact,  only  a  branch  of  the  "  Company  of  the  Indies,"  was  ab- 
sorbed in  the  parent  monopoly. 

During  fifteen  years  the  Western  Company  had  held  the 
control  and  monopoly  of  the  mines  and  commerce  of  the  prov- 
ince. They  exercised  all  the  rights  of  proprietors,  subject  only 
to  the  approbation  of  the  king  ;  yet  the  advantage  derived  was 
not  proportionate  to  their  outlay  and  their  expectations.  For 
the  last  three  years,  it  had  been  a  source  of  continual  expense 
and  harassing  vexation.  During  this  period,  the  population 
of  the  province  had  increased  but  little ;  yet  from  the  time 
when  the  company  first  assumed  the  control,  in  1717,  the  prov- 


27rt 


IIIMTORY    OP   THE 


[uooK  ir. 


ince  had  grcntly  changed.  At  that  period,  scarcely  seven 
hundred  souls,  of  all  ages,  sexes,  and  colors,  formed  the  civil- 
ized popidation  of  this  vast  provin(;e ;  now  the  number  of  the 
colonists  exceeded  five  thousand  souls,  among  whom  were 
many  men  of  worth  and  enter]>rise.  The  whole  number  of 
slaves  had  increased  from  twenty  souls  to  more  than  two  thou- 
sand. The  settlements  were  rai)idly  exten»ling  u|)om  tlie  fer- 
tile alluvions  of  the  Mississippi,  of  Red  River,  of  the  Washita, 
and  the  Arkansas,  besides  the  fine  agricultural  settlements  upon 
the  Illinois  and  Wabash  Rivers.* 

M.  Salmon,  as  commissioner  in  behalf  of  the  king,  received 
formal  possession  of  Louisiana  from  the  company.  The  crown 
also  purchased,  through  the  commissioner,  all  the  eflects  of  the 
company  in  the  province  at  a  fair  valuation,  amounting  to  about 
sixty  thousand  dollars.  The  property  thus  transferred  to  the 
crown  consisted  of  their  warehouses,  goods,  stock  in  trade, 
plantations,  with  two  hundred  and  sixty  negroes,  and  all  the 
appendages  of  their  planting  establishments.f 

Under  the  new  organization  of  the  government,  M.  Perriei 
retained  the  appointment  of  commandant-general,  and  M.  Sal- 
mon commissaire-ordonnateur.  Loubois  and  D'Artaguette, 
both  of  whom  had  distinguished  themselves  in  the  Natchez 
war,  were  the  king's  lieutenants,  the  first  for  Louisiana,  and 
the  second  for  the  Illinois  country. 

At  this  time,  the  settlements  of  Lower  Louisiana  had  ex- 
tended, at  various  points  on  the  Mississippi,  above  New  Or- 
leans. At  the  German  Coast,  the  river  bank  on  both  sides  was 
lined  by  a  large  number  of  handsome  cottages.  Large  settle- 
ments and  plantations  had  been  opened  at  Manchac,  Baton 
Rouge,  and  Point  Coupee,  besides  many  others  more  remote 
from  the  city.  At  Natchez,  settlements  had  extended  upon  the 
St.  Catharine  and  upon  Second  Creek,  from  its  sources  to  the 
Homochitto  River. 

The  culture  of  rice  was  extensive  ;  tobacco  and  indigo  had 
succeeded  well,  and  formed  articles  of  export.  A  flourishing 
trade  from  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  countries  increased  the 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  288,  S89. 

t  In  the  valuation  of  the  company's  property,  negroes  were  valued  at  an  average 
of  seven  hundred  livres,  or  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars  eadi.  Horses  were 
valued  at  fifly-seven  livres,  or  fourteen  dollars  twenty-five  cents  each.  Rice,  of  which 
there  were  eight  thousand  barrels,  was  rated  at  three  livres,  or  seventy-five  cents  per 
hundred  pounds.  The  value  of  a  horse  was  estimated  equal  to  nineteen  hundred  pounds 
of  rice. — See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  S9S. 


A.D.  1733.  J 


VAM.EY    OF    THE    MIHHIHHIPPI. 


277 


conimercijil  importunco  of  LouiHwinn.  Civil  government  was 
orgiini/.cd,  ami  religious  instruction  luui  been  am{>ly  supplied 
in  the  diflerent  settlements.  This,  of  course,  wns  the  ('atholic 
I'uith,  tiui(/ht  under  the  superintendence  of  the  vicur-genernl  nt 
New  Orleans,  as  a  portion  of  the  diocese  of  the  Bishop  of 
(•iuohec!.* 

The  Illinois  find  Wabasih  countries,  comprising  all  the  settle- 
ments on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  from  "  Fort  Chartres"  and 
Kaskaskia  #«nstward  to  the  Wabash,  and  south  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan, contained  many  flourishing  settlements  devoted  to  agri- 
culture and  the  Indian  trade. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

LOUISIANA  UNDER  TUB  ROYAL  GOVERNORS  UNTIL  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE 

CHICKASA  WAR. A.D.  1733  TO  1741. 

Alignment. — Recnpitulation  of  Chickai^  Hoitilitiei,  and  Eiiffliih  Intrigue  frnm  Caro- 
lina anil  Georgia. — Uienvillo  roappointud  Commamlant-gonoral  of  Lonisiana. — Me 
resolves  to  chnstiso  tho  Chickaa4a. — Demands  a  Surrender  of  the  Natc-hcz  Ilcfu- 
::oes. — Pru|)arcs  to  invade  the  ChidtaiA  Country. — Indian  Alliances  formed  with 
(Mioctfis. — Plan  of  Operations  to  invade  from  tito  Nortli  and  South  simultaneously. — 
Uienvillo,  with  the  main  Army  and  Allies,  pnicocds  up  tho  Tombighy. — Is  delayed 
liy  llains. — Marches  to  the  ChickasfV  Strong-hold. — Attacks  the  Fortress,  and  is  re- 
pulsed witli  Loss. — Retires,  and  finally  retreats  down  tho  Tombighy. — Defeat  of 
D'Artaguotto,  with  the  Illinois  Forces. — His  Captivity  and  Death  in  tho  ChickasA 
Country. — Bienville's  Account  of  tho  Chickasft  Fort. — Chickasfti  send  Ilunners  to 
apprise  tho  English  of  tlieir  Victory  over  the  French. — Bienville,  overwhelmed  with 
Chagrin,  resolves  on  a  second  Invasion  from  tho  Mississippi. — Tho  Plan  of  Invasion 
approved  by  tlio  Minister  of  War. — The  Orand  Army  proceeds  up  tho  Mississippi  to 
Fort  St.  Francis. — Fort  Assumption  built  on  Fourth  Chickasft  Bluff. — Delays  from 
Sickness  and  Want  of  Provisions. — M.  Celeron  advances  with  a  Detachment  toward 
tho  Chickasil  Towns. — Concludes  a  Peace,  by  Bienville's  Order,  with  a  single  Vil- 
lage.— Fort  Assumption  dismantled,  and  the  Army  descends  to  New  Orleans. — Bien- 
ville retires  under  the  Disgrace  of  a  second  Failure,  and  is  superseded  by  the  Marquis 
de  Vaudreuil  as  Governor.— Retrospect  of  the  Condition  of  tho  Province  up  to  the 
Year  1741. 

[A.D.  1733.]  From  the  first  settlement  of  Louisiana,  the 
Chickasa  Indians,  occupying  all  the  northern  half  of  the  pres- 
ent State  of  Mississippi,  and  all  the  western  half  of  Ten- 
nessee, had  often  manifested  feelings  inimical  to  the  French. 
This  feeling  was  known,  however,  to  proceed  from  British  in- 
trigue, carried  on  by  traders  and  emissaries  from  Carolina, 
which  then  comprised  the  present  states  of  North  and  South 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  389. 


278 


I1I3TORT    OF    TUB 


[book  II. 


Carolina.  Aware  of  the  bias  thus  produced  in  the  minds  of 
the  Chickasas  toward  the  French  settlements,  agents  and  em- 
issaries, during  Crozat's  monopoly,  as  well  as  under  the  West- 
ern Company,  had  endeavored  to  reconcile  them,  and  to  se- 
cure their  neutrality,  if  not  their  friendship,  by  mild  and  ami- 
cable means.  Efforts  were  made  to  establish  a  reciprov  al  in- 
tercourse with  them,  by  means  of  trading-posts  and  formal  ne- 
gotiations. But  the  result  of  all  such  overtures  was,  at  most, 
a  temporary  friendship,  or  a  disguised  hostility.  Within  the 
first  twenty  years  after  Iberville  planted  his  colony  on  the  Bay 
of  Mobile,  the  Chickasas  had  several  times  been  instrumental 
in  instigating  smaller  tribes  and  bands  into  hostilities  against 
the  French,  while  they  assumed  an  attitude  cf  disguised  friend- 
ship. On  the  Mississippi,  as  well  as  upon  the  Tombigby,  their 
depredations  upon  the  traders,  and  occasionally  their  murders 
at  remote,  unprotected  points,  had  been  subjects  of  remon- 
strance and  of  special  negotiation.  Influenced  by  British  em- 
issaries and  traders  from  Carolina,  they  had  almost  entirely 
excluded  French  traders,  and  the  agents  both  of  M.  Crozat  and 
the  Western  Company.  In  this  mannen  did  the  !^nglish  author- 
ities of  Carolina  attempt  to  arrest  the  extension  of  the  French 
settlements  east  of  the  Iiower  Mississippi. 

The  Chickasa  nation  constituted  a  rendezvous  for  British 
emissaries,  whence  they  might  operate  through  the  contiguous 
tribes ;  and  when  opportunity  might  offer,  they  could  penetrate 
the  territory  of  tribes  in  friendship  and  alliance  with  the  French. 
In  this  manner,  remote  settlements  were  often  placed  in  ex- 
treme danger  by  any  sudden  hostility  excited  in  the  contigu- 
ous tribes.  As  early  as  the  year  1715,  a  British  emissary 
named  Young  had  penetrated  from  the  Chickaslk  country 
through  all  the  small  tribes  then  inhabiting  the  southwestern 
portion  of  the  present  State  of  Mississippi,  and  thence  through 
the  tribes  from  New  Orleans  to  Pascagoula  Bay.  This  man 
having  been  captured  by  the  agent  of  M.  Crozat,  was  sent  a 
prisoner  to  Mobile.*  The  object  of  his  mission  was  to  form  a 
general  conspiracy  or  league  among  the  tribes,  for  the  total 
expulsion  of  the  French  from  Louisiana.  The  same  object 
was  attempted  by  others ;  but,  fortunately,  their  efforts  were 
unsuccessful. 

Such  attempts  on  the  part  of  the  English  served  as  a  full 

*  Martin'i  LouUiana,  vol.  h,  p.  185. 


A.D.   1733.]  VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


279 


justification  on  the  part  of  the  French  to  seek  means  of  retali- 
ation. For  this  purpose,  in  self-defense,  they  had  encouraged 
the  confederacy  of  the  Yamases  and  the  other  tribes  of  West- 
ern Georgia,  in  their  hostilities  against  the  English  settlements 
of  Carolina  the  same  year. 

Eight  years  afterward,  the  Chickasas  near  the  Mississippi  had 
resumed  their  hostilities  upon  the  traders  and  voyageurs  who 
conducted  the  commerce  between  Mobile  and  the  Illinois  coun- 
try. After  many  such  murders  and  robberies  had  been  com- 
mitted by  them,  Bienville  succeeded  in  restoring  peace  and  a 
temporary  security  to  the  river  trade,  without  any  general  rup- 
ture with  this  nation.  In  a  short  time,  however,  restless  des- 
peradoes in  the  West  resumed  their  attempts  to  harass  and  in- 
terrupt the  river  trade.  This  state  of  things  had  continued, 
with  occasional  intermissions,  until  about  the  close  of  the  year 
1729.  About  this  time  the  Chickasas  began  their  efforts  to 
form  a  conspiracy  among  all  the  tribes  south  of  them,  for  the 
destruction  of  the  French  settlements  throughout  Lower  Lou- 
isiana. In  this  conspiracy,  the  Natchez  tribe  had  been  origi- 
nally only  a  consenting  party,  the  Chickasas  being  the  princi- 
pals, until  circumstances  urged  the  former  to  become  princi- 
pals in  the  memorable  massacre  of  November,  1729.  During 
the  war,  which  resulted  in  the  annihilation  of  the  Natchez  tribe, 
although  the  Chickasas  took  no  active  part  in  the  contest,  they 
had  received  and  given  protection  to  the  refugees  of  that  tribe, 
as  well  as  to  many  fugitive  negroes  who  had  escaped  to  them 
after  the  Natchez  massacre.  They  also  had  given  a  refuge  to 
the  hostile  warriors  who  escaped  the  arms  of  M.  Perrier  on 
Black  River,  and  of  St.  Denys  at  Natchitoches,  in  the  autumn 
of  1732.     Such  was  the  prelude  to  the  Chickas&  war. 

The  province  of  Carolina,  in  1732,  had  been  divided  into 
North  and  South  Carolina,  for  the  greater  convenience  of  the 
royal  government.  The  proprietaries  having  formally  sold 
out  their  claims  to  the  crown,  from  that  time  North  and  South 
Carolina  were  distinct  royal  provinces,  under  a  newly-organ- 
ized government  of  the  king.*  Nor  was  this  the  only  move- 
ment made  by  the  English  crown  to  secure  a  footing  north  of 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  westward  to  the  Mississippi.  By  a 
royal  charter  of  George  II.,  a  new  province  had  been  planned, 
to  embrace  all  the  unoccupied  country  upon  the  Atlantic  coast 

*  MaiBhall's  Life  of  Waahington ;  Introduction,  vol.  i.,  p.  308. 


280 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


between  the  Savannah  and  Altamaha  Rivers,  and  to  extend 
from  their  sources  westward  to  the  Mississippi,  thus  interfering 
directly  with  the  claims  of  both  Spain  and  France.*  In  honor 
of  the  British  king,  it  had  been  called  the  Province  of  Georgia. 
A  colony  prepared  in  England,  under  General  James  Ogle- 
thorpe, for  its  settlement,  had  arrived  in  the  summer  of  1733, 
and  was  located  on  the  Savannah  River,  where  the  town  of 
Savannah  was  laid  off.  Thus  commenced  the  British  province 
of  Georgia,  which  received  annual  accessions  to  its  population 
by  successive  colonies  from  the  mother  country. 

[A.D.  1734.]  No  sooner  had  this  colony  been  located  than 
Oglethorpe  set  himself  to  forming  friendly  alliances  with  the 
neighboring  tribes.  In  a  short  time  his  agents  had  secured  the 
alliance  of  the  different  branches  of  the  Muskhogees,  the  Ya- 
mases,  and  Cherokees.  The  following  year,  Red  Shoes,  a 
Chocta  chief,  made  a  visit  to  Oglethorpe,  in  order  to  open  an 
advantageous  trade  for  his  tribe.  "  We  came  a  great  way," 
said  he,  "  and  we  are  a  great  nation.  The  French  ai-e  build- 
ing forts  about  us  against  our  liking.  We  have  long  traded 
with  them,  but  they  are  poor  in  goods :  we  desire  that  a  trade 
may  be  opened  between  us  and  you."  And  when  a  commerce 
with  them  began,  the  English  coveted  the  harbors  on  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  which  rightfully  belonged  to  Spain  and  France. 
Such  was  the  beginning  of  British  encroachments  upon  the  lim- 
its of  Louisiana.f 

The  Natchez  refugees,  still  thirsting  for  vengeance,  urged 
the  Chickasas  to  open  hostilities.  Encouraged  by  the  English 
traders  and  emissaries,  the  Chickasas  again  commenced  depre- 
dations and  murders  upon  the  French  commerce  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi. Before  another  year  elapsed,  they  threw  off  all  dis- 
guise, and  openly  espoused  the  Natchez  cause.  They  also 
dispatched  some  of  the  most  sagacious  and  artful  of  the  ne- 
groes who  had  escaped  from  the  Natchez  settlements,  as  emis- 
saries well  calculated  to  sow  the  seeds  of  insurrection  among 
the  slaves  on  the  plantations  near  New  Orleans.  They  were 
to  insinuate  themselves  among  the  slaves,  and  to  encourage 
them  to  a  bold  and  vigorous  effort  to  obtain  their  freedom  by 
the  destruction  of  their  masters ;  to  represent  to  them  their 
own  liberty,  and  the  ease  with  which  the  whole  slave  population 
could  be  speedily  emancipated,  when  they  might  find  a  secure 

*  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  410-421.  t  Idem,  p.  423. 


A.D.  1735.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


281 


refuge,  if  necessary,  with  their  friends  among  the  Chickasas. 
Several  of  these  emissaries  had  penetrated  to  the  plantations 
near  New  Orleans,  and  especially  to  that  formerly  belonging 
to  the  Western  Company,  on  which  there  were  two  hundred 
and  fifty  slaves.*  Such  are  the  intrigues,  and  such  the  means 
ever  used  by  the  British  government  to  accomplish  their  de- 
signs against  those  they  doom  to  destruction. 

The  contagion  of  their  seduction  spread  among  the  negroes 
with  surprising  rapidity.  They  held  meetings  for  night  parties 
and  dancing,  unsuspected  by  their  owners,  wherever  the  de- 
sired intercourse  between  the  leaders  could  be  effected.  A 
plan  was  actually  laid,  and  a  time  appointed  when  they  were 
to  collect  from  all  parts  around  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  which 
was  to  be  burned  and  the  people  massacred  by  one  party,  while 
another  party  were  to  seize  the  king's  arsenal  and  magazines, 
from  which  they  were  to  supply  themselves  with  arms  and 
ammunition.  From  this  point  they  were  to  carry  conflagra- 
tion and  slaughter  along  the  river  coast,  until  they  should  be 
joined  by  parties  of  Chickasas,  who  were  to  hold  themselves 
in  readiness  at  some  convenient  point  on  the  river  above.  The 
plot  was  discovered  in  time  to  prevent  it^s  contemplated  execu- 
tion. The  ringleaders  were  taken,  and  executed  in  the  most 
exemplary  manner,  as  a  warning  and  terror  to  others. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  intercourse  by  the  river  between  New 
Orleans  and  the  Illinois  country  was  so  hazardous,  by  reason 
of  Indian  murders  and  robberies,  that  the  river  commerce  was 
virtually  suspended,  and  the  colonies  were  kept  in  a  state  of 
continual  alarm. 

[A.D.  1735.]  Such  had  been  the  state  of  things  early  in  the 
year  1734,  when  Bienville  was  again  commissioned  by  the  king 
as  governor  and  commandant-general  of  Louisiana.  Early  in 
the  autumn  he  arrived  at  New  Orleans,  and  entered  upon  the 
duties  of  his  office.  Bienville,  in  his  old  age,  still  felt  a  thirst 
for  military  fame ;  he  also  coveted  the  honor  of  humbling  the 
tribes  which  had  espoused  the  Natchez  cause,  and  who  had 
afforded  them  an  asylum  from  the  vengeance  of  the  French. 

During  his  absence  from  the  province  the  horrible  massacre 
of  the  French  colony  on  the  St.  Catharine  had  taken  place,  be- 
sides numerous  other  Indian  outrages.  During  his  former  ad- 
ministration all  the  tribes  had  been  kept  in  due  subjection,  or 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  S95,  296. 


282 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book  ir. 


were  held  under  proper  restraint.  But  so  soon  as  he  left  for 
Europe,  Indian  outrages  commenced ;  murders  and  depredations 
were  frequent;  the  whole  province  was  kept  in  a  state  of 
continual  alarm  and  apprehension  of  Indian  aggression ;  the 
navigation  of  the  Mississippi  was  virtually  cut  off,  and  com- 
munications with  the  upper  province  interrupted.  None  of 
these  things  had  been  permitted  during  his  presence  in  the 
province.  He  had  now  returned,  and  he  doubted  not  that  his 
name  alone  would  be  a  check  upon  the  Indians,  and  a  terror  to 
the  Natchez  refugees.  Thus  he  may  have  reasoned  with  him- 
self. Accordingly,  soon  after  his  arrival  in  New  Orleans,  he 
dispatched  an  officer  to  the  principal  village  of  the  Chickasas, 
demanding  from  them  the  surrender  of  the  Natchez  refugees 
who  had  been  received  among  them.  In  reply  to  his  demand, 
he  was  informed  that  the  Natchez  Indians  had  been  incorpo- 
rated with  the  Chickasa  tribe,  and  could  not  be  given  up. 

Upon  the  reception  of  this  intelligence,  Bienville  determined 
to  inflict  signal  chastisement  upon  the  Chickasas  themselves, 
by  invading  and  laying  waste  their  country  with  a  powerful 
army.  The  whole  force  of  the  province  was  now  to  be  ar- 
rayed against  them.  The  government  of  France  itself  had 
given  directions  for  the  invasion,  and  the  royal  eye  was  turned 
anxiously  upon  the  coming  contest.* 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Natchez  refugees  and  a  few  hostile 
Chickasas  continued  to  harass  the  river  trade  by  their  repeat- 
ed robberies  and  murders  upon  the  traders  and  voyageurs.  At 
length  the  Mississippi  was  not  a  safe  route  between  the  remote 
portions  of  the  province  ;  few  only  of  those  who  ventured  to 
ascend  the  river  were  so  fortunate  as  to  escape  the  bandits  by 
whom  it  was  infested. 

Bienville  determined  to  lose  no  time  in  bringing  his  forces 
into  the  field,  and  in  executing  summary  vengeance  upon  the 
Chickasa  nation.  He  had  made  a  levy  of  troops  from  all  the 
settlements  upon  the  Upper  and  Lower  Mississippi,  and  from 
Mobile.  An  officer  had  been  sent  duly  authorized  to  solicit 
the  aid  and  alliance  of  the  Choct&s,  and  to  secure  their  co-oper- 
ation in  the  contemplated  expedition.  The  Chocta  chiefs,  con- 
ducted by  the  emissary,  met  Bienville  in  council  at  "  Fort 
Conde,"  and  contracted  to  lead  a  large  body  of  their  warriors 
to  "  Fort  Tombigby,"  which  was  to  be  erected  in  their  own 

*  Bancroft's  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  36S. 


A.D.  173G.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


283 


country,  about  two  hundred  and  fiily  miles  above  Mobile,  upon 
the  west  bank  of  the  Tombigby  River. 

An  officer  was  also  dispatched  with  a  detachment  of  troops 
to  erect  the  stockade  and  the  necessary  buildings  for  a  mili- 
tary d6p6t,  which  would  serve  as  a  general  rendezvous  for  the 
eastern  division  of  the  army.  An  order  was  likewise  sent  to 
M.  d'Artaguette,  commandant  at  Fort  Chartres,  and  son  of  the 
Chevalier  d'Artaguette,  to  march  his  whole  disposable  force 
for  the  Chickasa  nation,  including  all  the  troops  and  Indians 
which  could  be  collected  from  the  Illinois  and  Wabash  coun- 
tries. With  these  he  was  to  form  a  junction  with  the  grand 
army  about  the  10th  of  May,  between  the  sources  of  the  Ya- 
zoo and  the  Tombigby  Rivers.* 

The  plan  of  operations  was  as  follows :  Bienville,  with  the 
whole  force  of  Louisiana  and  the  Choctas  from  the  Tombigby* 
were  to  ascend  that  rivei  to  the  junction  of  its  principal  head 
streams,  the  east  and  west  forks,  supplied  with  military  stores 
and  artillery.  Here  he  was  to  advance  across  the  country  in 
a  northwest  direction  toward  the  strong-hold  of  the  Chickasas, 
which  was  upon  the  head  waters  of  the  Tallahatchy.  D'Arta- 
guette, with  the  Illinois  forces,  was  to  descend  the  Mississippi 
to  the  last  Chickasa  bluff,  there  disembark,  and  traverse  the 
country  in  a  southeast  direction  to  the  sources  of  the  Talla- 
hatchy. The  two  divisions  of  the  army  were  to  be  near  the 
dividing  ridges  about  the  10th  of  May,  when  further  operations 
would  be  concerted. 

[A.D.I  736.]  In  the  mean  time,  Bienville  was  absorbed  in  the 
object  of  collecting  a  strong  force  at  Fort  Conde,  preparatory  to 
the  invasion  of  the  Chickasa  country.  Early  in  the  spring  of 
1736,  the  troops  moved  from  New  Orleans  for  Mobile  in  thirty 
barges  and  thirty  large  pirogues.  On  the  10th  of  March  they 
arrived  at  Fort  Conde,  where  they  remained  preparing  for  the 
expedition  until  the  4th  of  April,  when  they  commenced  the 
voyage  up  the  Tombigby.  Ten  days  brought  the  army  to  Fort 
Tombigby.  Here  they  were  joined  by  six  hundred  Chocta 
warriors,  and  ten  days  afterward  six  hundred  more  arrived,  in- 
creasing the  whole  number  of  these  auxiliaries  to  twelve  hun- 
dred.! Rains  and  inclement  weather  multiplied  the  difficulties 
and  delays  of  the  invading  host.  An  army  unemployed  be- 
comes restless  and  discontented,  and  military  discipline  in  a 
state  of  idleness  will  rarely  quiet  the  discontented  mind. 

*  Bancroft,  vol  iii.,  p.  365.  t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  303,  303. 


iJ84 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


Already  some  of  the  advanced  guard,  sent  to  construct  Fort 
Tombigby  for  the  rendezvous,  had  attempted  to  escape  and  en- 
joy the  liberty  of  the  wilderness ;  but  they  were  taken,  and  in 
the  wilds  of  Alabama,  condemned  by  a  court-martial,  they  were 
shot,  a  warning  to  the  discontented. 

Such  had  been  the  unavoidable  delays,  that  Bienville  did  not 
leave  Fort  Tombigby  until  the  4th  of  May,  only  six  days  pre- 
vious to  the  junction  which  D'Artaguette  was  instructed  to  make 
with  him  upon  the  sources  of  the  Tallahatchy.  The  boats  and 
barges  moved  slowly  up  the  tortuous  stream,  while  the  light  in- 
fantry and  the  Indian  auxiliaries  advanced  by  land  across  the 
country.  From  Fort  Tombigby  to  the  junction  of  the  East  and 
West  Forks,  where  the  artillery  and  munitions  of  war  were  to 
be  deposited,  was  but  little  short  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles, 
following  the  meanders  of  the  stream.  To  reach  this  destina- 
tion required  near  twenty  days  of  toil  before  the  little  fleet 
could  make  the  point  for  disembarking  the  troops  and  muni- 
tions of  war.  At  length,  upon  the  banks  of  the  Tombigby,  not 
far  from  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Cotton-gin  Port,  and 
nearly  five  hundred  miles,  by  the  river,  from  Mobile,  Bienville 
disembarked  his  supplies,  and  erected  a  stockade  fort  for  the 
protection  of  the  sick,  the  baggage,  the  military  stores,  and  the 
artillery.  The  nearest  Chickasa  town  was  twenty-seven  miles 
distant,  in  a  northwestern  direction,*  and  probably  within  a  few 
miles  of  the  present  town  of  Pontotoc.  The  town  was  known 
to  be  well  fortified,  and  was  situated,  probably,  upon  the  bank 
of  Pontotoc  Creek,  in  the  northern  part  of  Mississippi,  and  in 
the  central  portion  of  Pontotoc  county,  which  perpetuate  the 
name  of  the  Indian  strong-hold. 

The  stockade  having  been  completed,  and  a  sufficient  guard 
having  been  detailed  for  its  defense,  Bienville  commenced  his 
march  with  the  army  in  two  columns,  flanked  by  the  Chocta 
virarriors,  in  search  of  the  enemy.  Then  it  was  that  "  the  soli- 
tudes of  the  quiet  forests  and  blooming  prairies,  between  the 
sources  of  the  Tombigby  and  Tallahatchy,  were  disturbed  by 
the  march  of  the  army  toward  the  strong-hold  of  their  ancient 
enemy ."t  On  the  evening  of  the  25th  of  May,  the  army  en- 
camped within  one  league  of  the  Indian  citadel.  Next  morn- 
ing, before  day,  the  Choctas  advanced  to  surprise  the  enemy's 


*  Bancroft,  vol.  iil,  p.  366.    Martin  says  ^he  Chickik.u.  lort  lay  northeast  from  the 
point  of  debarkation.    See  vol  i.,  p.  303.  t  Bancroft,  vol.  iii.,  p.  366. 


A.D.  1730.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


285 


post ;  but  the  Chickasas  were  on  the  alert,  and  their  intrench- 
ments  were  strong.  The  Chocta  warriors,  after  vainly  assail- 
ing its  impregnable  defenses,  retired  from  the  assault.  About 
noon  the  French  army  advanced  in  battle  array,  and  posted 
themselves  ia  full  view  of  the  fort,  ready  for  the  fearful  assault. 
The  British  flag  was  seen  waving  over  its  ramparts,  and  it  was 
known  that  British  traders  and  emissaries  were  in  the  fort,  con- 
ducting the  defense.* 

About  one  o'clock  the  French  column,  prepared  with  hand- 
grenades  for  the  conflagration  of  the  buildings,  advanced  to  the 
charge  with  the  cheering  shout  of  "  Vive  le  roV^  Twice  during 
the  day  was  the  assault  renewed  with  fire  and  sword,  and  twice 
were  their  columns  repulsed  by  the  terrible  fire  from  the  fort. 
Four  hours  had  the  battle  raged  around  the  intrenchments,  with- 
out success  or  hope  of  victory.  Many  had  fallen  among  the 
slain,  many  were  severely  wounded,  and  the  number  of  killed 
and  wounded  were  multiplying  rapidly.  Bienville,  despairing 
of  success  without  the  aid  of  artillery,  and  seeing  his  brave 
troops  constantly  falling  in  the  unequal  contest,  ordered  a  re- 
treat to  be  sounded,  and  drew  off"  his  forces.  The  retreat  was 
led  off"  in  excellent  order,  but  the  slain  were  left  upon  their  gory 
battle-field.  Such  was  the  result  of  this  day's  contest.  The 
Fz'ench  in  the  assaults  had  thirty-two  men  killed,  and  sixty-one 
were  wounded.     Among  the  slain  were  four  officers  of  rank. 

The  army  retired  to  their  camp,  one  league  distant,  and  spent 
the  evening  and  night  in  throwing  up  an  intrenchment  around 
it  for  their  more  perfect  security. 

Next  morning  the  Choctas  advanced  to  skirmish  with  par- 
ties of  Chickasas ;  as  they  approached  the  fort,  they  beheld  the 
bodies  of  the  French  who  had  fallen  in  the  assaults  of  the  pre- 
vious day,  quartered  and  impaled  upon  the  stockades  of  the  fort. 

Three  days  were  spent  in  the  fortified  camp,  but  no  further 
serious  attempt  was  made  to  dislodge  the  enemy  from  their 
strong-hold.  Surrounded  by  the  hostile  warriors  in  the  midst  of 
the  enemy's  country,  Bienville  received  no  tidings  of  the  north- 
ern division  from  the  Illinois,  or  of  the  arrival  of  D'Artaguette 
among  the  Chickasas.  Chagrin  at  his  unexpected  repulse  com- 
pletely overwhelmed  the  veteran  chief,  and,  despairing  of  his 
ability  to  reduce  the  formidable  position  occupied  by  his  war- 
like enemies,  he  determined  to  abandon  the  enterprise  and  re- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  301,  303. 


386 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  II. 


turn  to  New  Orleans.  On  the  29th  of  May  he  broke  up  his 
encampment  and  took  up  the  retrograde  line  of  march,  and  on 
the  following  day  halted  at  the  head  of  Tombigby,  where  his 
stores  and  artillery  had  been  deposited.  Here  he  made  but 
little  delay  previous  to  his  final  departure  from  the  Chickasii 
country.  On  the  31st  he  dismissed  the  Choctas  with  kind 
words  and  presents,  when,  after  throwing  his  cannon  into  the 
Tombigby,  with  his  army  he  floated  down  the  river  inglori- 
ously  to  Fort  Conde.*  Near  the  last  of  June,  he  entered  the 
Bayou  St.  John  on  his  return  to  New  Orleans,  covered  with 
defeat  and  shame. 

In  the  mean  time,  where  was  the  young  and  chivalrous  D'Ar- 
taguette?  He  and  his  brave  companions  were  sleeping  the 
quiet  sleep  of  death  in  the  land  from  which  Bienville  had  inglo- 
riously  fled. 

D'Artaguette,  the  pride  and  flower  of  Canada,  had  convened 
the  tribes  of  the  Illinois  atFortChartres;  he  had  unfolded  to  them 
the  plans  and  designs  of  the  great  French  captain  against  the 
Chickasas,  and  invoked  their  friendly  aid.  At  his  summons,  the 
friendly  chiefs,  the  tawny  envoys  of  the  North,  with  "Chicago" 
at  their  head,  had  descended  the  Mississippi  to  New  Orleans, 
and  there  had  presented  the  pipe  of  peace  and  friendship  to 
the  governor.  "  This,"  said  Chicago  to  M.  Perrier,  as  he  con- 
cluded an  alliance  oflfensive  and  defensive,  "this  is  the  pipe  of 
peace  or  war.  You  have  but  to  speak,  and  our  braves  will 
strike  the  nations  that  are  your  foes."t  They  had  made  haste 
to  return,  and  had  punctually  convened  their  braves  under  Ar- 
taguette.  Chicago  was  the  Illinois  chief  from  the  shore  of  Lake 
Michigan,  whose  monument  was  reared,  a  century  afterward, 
upon  the  site  of  his  village,  and  whose  name  is  perpetuated  in 
the  most  flourishing  city  of  Illinois. 

In  due  time,  D'Artaguette  and  his  lieutenant,  the  gallant  Vin- 
cennes,  from  the  Wabash,  with  their  respective  forces  and  In- 
dian allies,  had  descended  the  Mississippi  to  the  last  Chickasa 
bluff",  and,  agreeably  to  his  orders,  had  penetrated  the  Chickasa 
country.  The  fearless  heroes  had  cautiously,  and  unobserved, 
penetrated  from  the  bluffs  eastward  into  the  heart  of  the  Chick- 
asa country,  and,  on  the  evening  before  the  appointed  10th  of 
May,  had  encamped  among  the  sources  of  the  Yalobusha,  prob- 
ably not  six  miles  east  of  the  present  town  of  Pontotoc,  near 

*  Bancroft's  United  States,  vol.  iii..  p.  366.  t  Ibidem,  p.  365. 


h 


A.D.  1736.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


287 


the  appointed  place  of  rendezvous,  and  not  more  than  thirty 
miles  from  the  point  of  Bienville's  debarkation.  Here,  ready 
for  co-operation  with  the  commander-in-chief,  D'Artaguette  and 
his  brave  troops  were  prepared  to  maintain  the  arms  and  the 
honor  of  France. 

With  his  lieutenant  Vincennes,  the  youthful  Voisin,  and  his 
spiritual  guide  and  friend,  the  Jesuit  Senat,  D'Artaguette  sought 
in  vain  for  intelligence  of  his  commander.  But  he  maintained 
his  post,  and  from  the  0th  until  the  20th  of  May  he  encamped 
in  sight  of  the  enemy,  until  his  Indian  auxiliaries,  becoming 
impatient  for  war  and  plunder,  refused  all  further  restraint. 
D'Artaguette  then  consented  to  lead  them  to  the  attack.  His 
plans  were  wisely  devised  and  vigorously  executed ;  but,  un- 
supported by  the  main  army,  what  could  he  effect  against  a 
powerful  enemy  ? 

The  attack  was  made  with  great  fury  against  a  fortified  vil- 
lage ;  the  Chickasas  were  driven  from  their  town  and  the  fort 
which  defended  it ;  at  the  second  town,  the  intrepid  youth  was 
equally  successful.  A  third  fort  was  attacked,  and,  in  the  mo- 
ment of  victory,  he  received  a  severe  wound,  and  soon  after 
another,  by  which  he  fell  disabled.  He  distinguished  himself, 
as  he  had  done  before  in  the  Natchez  war,  by  acts  of  great 
valor  and  deeds  of  noble  daring.  "  The  red  men  of  Illinois, 
dismayed  at  the  check,  fled  precipitately.  Voisin,  a  lad  but 
sixteen  years  old,  conducted  the  retreat,  having  the  enemy  at 
his  heels  for  five-and-twenty  leagues,  and  marching  forty-five 
leagues  without  food,  while  his  men  carried  with  them  such  of 
the  wounded  as  could  bear  the  fatigue."  But  the  unhappy 
D'Artaguette  was  left  weltering  in  his  blood,  and  around  him 
lay  others  of  his  bravest  troops.*  The  Jesuit  Senat  might  have 
fled ;  but  he  remained  to  receive  the  last  sigh  of  the  wounded, 
regardless  of  danger,  and  mindful  only  of  duty.  *'  Vincennes, 
too,  the  Canadian,  refused  to  fly,  and  shared  the  captivity  of 
his  gallant  leader."t 

*  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  366, 367.  See,  also,  Martin's 
Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  303,  304. 

t  The  troops  from  Illinois  iu  this  campaign,  as  they  advanced  to  the  attack,  had  their 
bodies  protected  in  front,  from  the  arrows  of  the  Chickas&s,  by  wool-sacks,  or  quilted 
cushions  made  of  wool,  suspended  before  their  bodies.  This  novel,  and  yet  very  useful 
kind  of  armor,  was  discovered  by  the  British  traders  in  the  fort,  who  directed  the 
Chickasas  to  shoot  at  their  heads  and  legs. — Stoddart,  p.  63. 

Prescott,  in  his  "  Conquest  of  Mexico"  by  Hernando  Cortez,  describes  a  similar  pro- 
tection made  of  cotton,  and  used  by  the  Spaniards  against  the  arrows  and  missiles  of 
the  Mexican  Indians. 


288 


III8TORY    OF   TIIR 


[book  II. 


D'Art.ii^iiette  and  his  valiant  companions  who  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Chickasas  were  treated  with  great  kindness  and 
attention ;  their  wounds  were  dressed  by  the  Indians,  who 
watched  over  them  with  fraternal  tenderness,  and  they  were 
received  into  the  cabins  of  the  victors  in  hopes  of  a  great  ran- 
som from  Bienville,  who  was  known  to  be  advancing  by  way 
of  the  Tombigby  with  a  powerful  army.  But  the  same  day 
brought  the  intelligence  of  the  advance  and  the  discomfiture  of 
the  commander-in-chief.  His  retreat  and  final  departure  soon 
followed,  and  the  Chickasas,  elated  with  their  success,  and  de- 
spairing of  the  expected  ransom,  resolved  to  sacrifice  the  vic- 
tims to  savage  triumph  and  revenge.  The  prisoners  were 
taken  to  a  neighboring  field,  and,  while  one  was  left  to  relate 
their  fate  to  their  countrymen,  the  young  and  intrepid  D'Arta- 
guette,  and  the  heroic  Vincennes,  whose  name  is  borne  by  the 
oldest  town  in  Indiana,  and  will  be  perpetuated  as  long  as  the 
Wabash  shall  flow  by  the  dwellings  of  civilized  men,  and  the 
faithful  Senat,  true  to  his  mission,  were,  with  their  companions, 
each  tied  to  a  stake.  Here  they  were  torhn-ed  before  slow  and 
intermitting  fires,  until  death  mercifully  released  them  from 
their  protracted  torments.*  Such  were  the  sufferings  of  the 
leaders  of  the  northern  division,  at  the  very  time  that  Bienville 
had  commenced  his  inglorious  voyage  down  the  Tombigby : 
and  such  is  the  early  history  of  the  white  man  in  Mississippi. 

Thus  the  magnificent  parade  of  Bienville,  and  his  pompous 
threats  against  the  Chickasas,  terminated  in  a  complete  failure 
of  the  expedition,  and  brouj'.t  a  cloud  of  disgrace  upon  his 
military  fame.  The  Chickasas  proved  themselves  then  the 
true  descendants  of  the  powerful  and  warlike  nation  which  had 
encountered  the  steel-clad  chivalry  of  De  Soto,  two  hundred 
years  before.  The  French  allege  that  the  fort,  attacked  by 
the  forces  under  Bienville,  was  constructed  of  large  and  tali 
palisades  planted  in  the  ground,  and  perforated  with  numerous 
loop-holes  for  firing  upon  an  approaching  enemy ;  and  that  a 
strong  platform  of  boards,  covered  with  earth,  extended  around 
the  inside,  so  as  to  protect  the  defenders  from  the  hand-gren- 
ades used  by  the  French  in  the  assault.  The  British  traders 
and  emissaries  had  taught  them  the  art  of  fortifying  their  vil- 
lages, and  of  making  regular  defenses  against  field  artillery. 

It  was  not  until  early  in  July,  and  soon  after  his  arrival  at 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  304. 


A.D.  1739.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE   t> 


"•flPPI. 


8t0 


New  Orleans,  that  Bienville  learned  >  run  or  the  ^ad  fate  of 
D'Artaguette  and  his  companions  in  a:  ms,  *vho  I  d  been  sac- 
rificed to  his  strict  obedience  to  militai  /  orders,  u  ul  to  the  In- 
excusable want  of  energy  in  the  commander-in-cluof. 

The  English  settlements  in  Georgia  were  apprined  of  fftjs 
disastrous  expedition  of  the  Freuch  within  a  few  weeks  fer 
Bienville  reached  New  Orleans  ;  for  the  Chickasas,  elated  with 
their  victory  over  the  French,  sent  runners  the  Ha  mo  summer 
to  narrate  to  Oglethorpe,  on  the  Savannah,  how  they  had  met 
and  defeated  the  French  in  two  divisions,  and  what  lingering 
torments  they  had  inflicted  upon  the  captives.  "  Ever  attached 
to  the  English,  they  now  sent  their  deputation  of  thirty  war- 
riors, with  their  civil  sachem  and  war-chief,  to  make  an  alli- 
ance with  Oglethorpe,  whose  fame  had  reached  the  Mississippi. 
They  brought  for  him  an  Indian  chaplet,  made  from  the  spoils 
of  their  enemies,  glittering  with  feathers  of  many  hues,  and  en- 
riched with  the  horns  of  buffaloes."* 

[A.D.  1737.]  Bienville,  mortified  with  the  result  of  his  late 
unsuccessful  campaign  against  the  Chickasas  in  the  East,  de- 
termined to  retrieve  his  honor  and  the  glory  of  France  by 
a  more  powerful  invasion  from  the  West.  With  but  little 
grounds  for  the  assurance,  he  hoped  that  the  route  of  D'Arta- 
guette was  more  accessible,  and  that  victory  might  attend  his 
arms  where  fortune  had  smiled  upon  the  intrepid  commandant 
of  Fort  Chartres.  A  plan  of  an  expedition  against  the  Chick- 
as&s  with  a  grand  army,  by  way  of  the  Chickasa  Bluffs,  was 
devised  and  laid  before  the  minister  for  his  sanction. 

[A.D.  1738.]  The  approbation  of  the  minister  was  trans- 
mitted to  Bienville  near  the  close  of  the  following  year,  and 
he  began  to  put  in  operation  his  plans  for  humbling  the  pride 
and  power  of  his  late  fierce  antagonists.  Great  preparations 
were  set  on  foot  thi'oughout  the  whole  province,  and  far  ex- 
ceeding any  thing  of  the  kind  which  had  been  seen  in  Louisi- 
ana from  its  first  settlement.  The  signal  of  preparation  was 
given,  and  the  commandants  throughout  the  province  had  their 
orders  from  the  commandant-general  himself.  The  spring  of 
1739  was  the  time  for  the  contemplated  grand  invasion. 

[A.D.  1739.]  The  route  of  the  contemplated  invasion  was 
from  the  lower  Chickasft  Bluff,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, eastward  to  the  principal  towns,  about  two  hundred  miles 

*  Bancroft's  United  States,  vol.  iii.,  p.  433. 

Vol.  I.— T 


200 


lllflTORY    or   TUB 


[book  II. 


distant,  on  the  sources  of  the  Tallahatchy  and  Tombighy  Riv- 
ers. A  fort  was  ordered  as  the  point  of  general  rendezvous 
for  the  grand  army,  near  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Francis  River, 
on  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi.  H^re  the  allied  army  was 
to  have  its  general  d6poi  for  baggage,  the  sick,  and  military 
stores.  Troops,  together  with  large  bodies  of  friendly  Indians, 
were  to  be  drawn  from  all  the  posts,  settlements,  and  regions 
contiguous  to  the  Lower  Mississippi  and  Mobile.  These  were 
to  be  joined  at  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Francis  by  all  the  troops 
and  Indian  allies  to  be  mustered  from  the  Illinois  and  Wabash 
countries,  under  their  respective  commanders. 

All  things  being  in  readiness  about  the  last  of  May,  the  main 
army  began  to  leave  New  Orleans  for  the  rendezvous  at  the 
mouth  of  the  St.  Francis.  They  embarked  in  a  fleet  of  boats 
and  barges,  and  slowly  moved  up  the  strong  current  of  the 
Mississippi  until  the  last  of  June,  when  they  reached  Fort  St. 
Francis.  This  division  of  th6  army  consisted  of  Louisiana 
militia  and  regular  troops,  besides  a  few  companies  of  marines, 
and  more  than  sixteen  hundred  Indian  allies.  The  division 
from  the  Illinois  and  Wabash,  commanded  by  La  Buissonidre, 
commandant  of  Fort  Chartres,  comprised  about  two  hundred 
men,  including  regulars,  militia,  and  some  cadets  from  Canada, 
besides  about  three  hundred  Indian  allies  under  the  command 
of  M.  Celeron  and  M.  St.  Laurent,  his  lieutenants.  The  entire 
force  now  at  Bienville's  command  was  about  twelve  hundred 
whites,  and  nearly  twenty-five  hundred  Indians  and  negroes, 
giving  a  grand  total  of  three  thousand  seven  hundred  fighting 
men. 

With  but  little  delay,  the  army  was  crossed  over  to  the  east 
bank  of  the  Mississippi,  where  "  Fort  Assumption"  was  built, 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Margot,  or  Wolf  River,  as  a  convenient 
d^pot  for  the  sick,  the  baggage,  and  military  stores.  This  fort, 
however,  was  delayed  in  its  completion  until  the  middle  of 
August.*  By  this  time,  sickness  and  the  autumnal  fevers  be- 
gan to  make  fearful  ravages  in  the  ranks,  both  among  the  Eu- 
ropeans and  the  Canadians.  Those  who  escaped  disease,  as 
well  as  those  who  had  recovered  from  its  attack,  were  debili- 
tated and  unfit  for  active  service.  The  cool,  bracing  air  of 
«arly  winter  and  the  purifying  frosts  were  anxiously  expected, 
as  the  best  restoratives  against  the  debilitating  effects  of  a  long 
*  Martin's  Looiiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  307. 


A.D.  1740.] 


VAMiKY    OP  TIIR    MISfllHSim. 


301 


Numnncr  upon  their  northern  conBtitutions.  Early  winter  canoe, 
and  found  the  ranks  more  than  decimated ;  and  while  the  at- 
muaphero  became  wholesome  and  elastic,  and  the  troops  began 
to  assume  their  wonted  vigor,  a  new  enemy  threatened  them 
with  annihilation.  This  was  famine ;  for  the  supplies  of  provis- 
ions had  begun  to  fail,  and  all  were  reduced  to  short  allow- 
ance. The  invasion  of  the  Chickasa  country  must  now  be  de- 
layed until  supplies  were  received  from  New  Orleans  and  from 
Fort  Chartres.  Thus  was  the  expedition  against  the  Chickasi 
towns  deferred  until  the  middle  of  March  following,  when  a 
large  portion  of  the  white  troops  were  so  much  debilitated  by 
exposure  to  the  inclemency  of  winter,  and  by  the  want  of 
wholesome  food,  that  not  more  than  two  hundred  effective  men 
could  be  mustered  who  were  able  to  take  up  the  line  of  march 
with  the  Indian  and  negro  warriors  toward  the  Chickasd 
towns.  With  these,  M.  Celeron  had  orders  to  march  against 
the  Chickas&s,  and  was  specially  instructed  to  lose  no  oppor- 
tunity of  treating  for  peace.  As  he  advanced,  the  ChickasAs, 
at  first  sight,  supposed  the  whole  French  army  was  close  be- 
hind them,  and,  as  a  measure  of  safety,  sued  for  peace.  M. 
Celeron,  taking  advantage  of  their  alarm,  entered  into  a  treaty 
of  peace  and  friendship.* 

[A.D.  1740.]  The  Indians  promised  to  remain  the  true 
friends  of  the  French,  and  declared  they  would  renounce  the 
English,  who  had  incited  them  to  hostilities.  M.  Celeron,  in  the 
name  of  Bienville,  promised  peace  to  the  Chickas&  nation ;  and 
a  deputation  of  chiefs  and  warriors  accompanied  his  return 
march,  to  consummate  the  bonds  of  peace  by  a  regular  treaty, 
to  be  concluded  at  Fort  Assumption.  Here  Bienville  entered 
into  negotiations,  which  were  ratified,  after  the  Indian  custom, 
with  presents  and  festivity. 

Fort  Assumption  was  dismantled  ;  the  army  retired  to  Fort 
St.  Francis,  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Mississippi.  Here 
Bienville,  having  discharged  his  Northern  troops  and  the  Indian 
allies,  prepared  again  to  float  ingloriously  down  the  Mississippi 
with  the  main  army.  Thus  ended  the  second  invasion  of  the 
Chickasa  country,  begun  by  Bienville  to  retrieve  his  military 
fame,  but  which  sunk  it  lower  than  it  had  been  before. 

After  a  long  and  expensive  preparation  in  two  campaigns ; 
after  the  loss*of  many  lives,  many  slain  in  battle,  and  far  more 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  ▼ol.  i.,  p.  308,  309. 


J 


202 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  II. 


ingloriously  swept  off  by  disease  and  famine,  the  war  was  dis- 
continued, and  a  treaty  of  peace  had  been  concluded  with  the 
chiefs  and  warriors  of  a  single  town,  and  without  a  single  lau- 
rel upon  the  commander's  brow. 

This  campaign  closed  the  military  career  of  Bienville  m 
Louisiana.  He  had  been  bold,  ardent,  and  an  able  command- 
er in  his  youth ;  but,  cooled  in  his  ardor  by  the  snows  of  thirty- 
six  winters  in  the  service,  he  was  ill  qualified  for  the  arduous 
duties  of  conducting  an  army  through  a  wilderness  of  swamps 
and  dense  forests,  remote  from  the  facilities  of  civilized  life. 
To  contend  with  the  wily  savage  in  his  own  native  forests  re- 
quires the  energies  of  the  iron-hearted  warrior  in  the  prime  of 
manhood  and  in  the  vigor  of  health. 

To  crown  the  misfortune  of  two  disastrous  campaigns,  Bien- 
ville, the  following  spring,  was  succeeded  in  the  government 
of  Louisiana  by  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  who  was  appointed 
governor  and  commandant-general.  Thus  the  public  career 
of  Bienville,  who  for  nearly  forty  years,  a  few  short  intervals 
excepted,  had  controlled  the  affairs  of  Louisiana,  terminated 
under  a  cloud  of  censure,  and  the  disapprobation  of  his  sover- 
eign. Such  are  the  vicissitudes  of  fortune,  which  assail  the  high 
as  well  as  the  humble. 

The  population  and  wealth  of  Louisiana  for  the  last  five 
years  had  continued  to  increase  gradually,  notwithstanding  the 
hostile  attitude  of  the  Chickasas  and  the  reverses  of  two  unsuc- 
cessful campaigns.  The  settlements  had  gradually  extended 
and  multiplied  upon  Red  River,  and  upon  the  Washita,  as  well 
as  upon  the  Upper  and  Lower  Mississippi.  Agricultural  pro- 
ductions, adapted  to  the  climate,  both  in  the  upper  and  lower 
portions  of  the  province,  were  important  items  in  the  commerce 
with  the  parent  country.  About  this  time  cotton  was  intro- 
duced as  an  agricultural  product  of  Louisiana,  but  for  many 
years  it  was  cultivated  only  in  small  quantities.* 

[A.D.  1741.]  The  emigration  from  France  continued  to 
swell  the  population  of  New  France  and  Louisiana.  Every 
arrival  from  France  was  the  harbinger  of  a  new  settlement,  or 
the  extension  of  the  old.  Many  Canadians,  retiring  from  the 
rigors  of  the  long  winters  on  the  St.  Lawrence,  sought  the  com- 
paratively mild  climate  of  the  Wabash  and  the  Illinois  coun- 
tries.    While  the  Chickasas,  instigated  by  British  intrigue,  had 

*  Stoddart's  Sketches  of  Louigiana,  p.  65. 


A.D.  1741.J 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


293 


kept  up  a  state  of  continual  hostilities  from  the  Yazoo  to  the 
Ohio,  the  tribes  north  of  the  Ohio,  and  to  the  very  sources  of 
the  Alleghany  River,  were  mostly  in  friendly  alliance  with  the 
French,  and  received  their  traders  and  missionaries  into  almost 
every  village.  French  settlements  from  Canada  began  to  ex- 
tend south  of  the  Western  lakes  upon  the  streams  which  flow 
into  Lake  Erie  and  Lake  Michigan,  and  trading-posts  were 
slowly  passing  the  dividing  plains  upon  the  tributaries  of  the 
Ohio,  within  the  limits  of  the  present  States  of  Ohio  and  Indi- 
ana. The  Illinois  country,  embracing  much  of  the  present 
State  of  Illinois,  likewise  derived  emigrants  from  Canada,  as 
well  as  through  Lower  Louisiana.  The  traders  and  voyageurs, 
in  their  continual  intercourse  and  traffick,  penetrated  the  re- 
motest tributaries  of  the  Mississippi,  and  maintained  a  friendly 
attitude  with  the  remotest  tribes. 

Many  of  the  tropical  fruits  and  luxuries  had  been  introduced 
into  the  settlements.  The  fig-tree  and  the  orange-tree  had  al- 
ready begun  to  adorn  the  residences  of  the  colonists,  as  well 
as  to  supply  them  with  delicious  fruit ;  the  yam  and  the  vari- 
eties of  the  West  India  sweet  potato  were  already  a  certain 
crop  for  the  sustenance  of  their  numerous  families. 


S0t 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


CHAPTER  X. 

CONDITION  OF  LOUISIANA  FROM  THE  CLOSE    OF  THE  CHICKASA  WAR 
UNTIL    THE    TERMINATION     OF     THE     FRENCH    DOMINION. A.D. 

1741  TO  1764. 

Argument. — Loaigiaoa  oontinaes  Frosperooa  and  free  from  Indian  Hostilities  nntil  the 
Close  of  the  Acadian  War. — Agricaltare  and  Trade  prosper  under  individaal  Enter- 
prise.— Equinoctial  Storm  in  1745. — Rigorous  Winter  of  1748-9  killed  the  Orange- 
trees. — La  Buissoniere  and  Macarty  Commandants  at  Fort  Chartres. — Condition  of 
Agripultaral  Settlements  near  New  Orleans. — Staples,  Bice,  Indigo,  Cotton,  Tobacco. — 
Sugar-cane  first  introduced  in  1751,  and  Sugar  subsequently  becomes  a  Staple  Product. 
— The  British  resume  their  Intrigue  with  the  Choct&s  and  Chickas&s  after  the  Close 
of  the  Acadian  War. — Choct&s  commence  War. — Chickas&s  resume  Hostilities  on 
the  Mississippi. — Disturbances  break  oat  on  the  Ohio  with  the  English  Provinces. — 
Governor  Vaudreuil  invades  the  Chickasa  Coimtry  by  way  of  the  Tombigby. — Rav- 
ages their  Towns  and  Fields. — Collisions  between  French  and  English  on  the  Ohio. 
— Ohio  Company's  Grant  leads  to  Hostilities. — Re-enforcement  sent  to  Fort  Char- 
tres.— Lower  Louisiana  is  prosperous. — Horrid  Military  Execution  for  Revolt  at  Cat 
Island. — isrituh  Inhumanity  to  the  People  of  Acadia. — Origin  of  the  "Acadian 
Coast"  in  1755. — Louisiana  suffers  again  from  Paper  Money  in  1756. — The  French 
abandon  the  Ohio  Region. — Canada  falls  under  the  Arms  of  Britain  in  1759,  and 
many  Canadians  emigrate  to  Louisiana. — France  relinquishes  all  Louisiana,  by 
Treaties  of  1762  and  1763,  to  Spain  and  Great  Britain. — Great  Britain  takes  posses- 
sion of  Florida  and  Eastern  Louisiana  in  1764-5. — Spain  assumes  Jurisdiction  over 
Western  Louisiana  in  1765. — Extension  of  the  Limits  of  West  Florida  by  Great 
Britain. — Spain  and  Great  Britain  divide  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  until  the 
United  States  succeed,  first  to  British,  and  then  to  Spanish  Louisiana. 

[A.D.  1741.]  For  ten  years  after  the  close  of  the  Chickasa 
war,  the  settlements  of  Louisiana  were  comparatively  free  from 
Indian  hostilities.  The  English  provinces  along  the  Atlantic 
coast,  during  the  greatest  portion  of  this  time,  were  involved 
with  the  mother  country  in  prosecuting  the  Northern  or  Aca- 
dian war,  against  the  French  provinces  south  of  the  St.  Law- 
rence and  north  of  New  England.  The  remote  province  of 
Louisiana  and  the  Illinois  country,  inaccessible  alike  to  British 
fleets  and  armies,  remained  free  from  Indian  hostilities. 

During  this  period,  the  French  of  Louisiana  and  of  the  Illi- 
nois country  had  succeeded  in  establishing  amicable  relations 
with  all  the  tribes  west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  from  the 
sources  of  the  Alleghany  and  the  Tennessee  Rivers  to  the  Mis- 
souri, and  from  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi  to  New  Orleans 
and  Texas.  The  whole  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  had  yielded 
to  the  dominion  of  France,  and  the  native  tribes  had  become 
her  allies. 


A.D.  1745.] 


VAIiLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


295 


As  early  as  the  year  1742,  the  defense  of  the  country  being 
in  the  hands  of  the  king's  officers  and  troops,  the  Indian  tribes 
generally  observed  a  respectful  neutrality,  or  a  friendly  and 
commercial  attitude.  Free  from  danger  and  apprehension  of 
Indian  violence,  agriculture  continued  to  flourish,  and  com- 
merce, freed  from  thfe  shackles  of  monopolies,  began  rapidly  to 
extend  its  influence,  and  to  multiply  its  objects  under  the  stim- 
ulus of  individual  enterprise.  Capitalists  embarked  with  alac- 
rity into  agriculture  and  commerce.  The  trade  between  the 
northern  and  southern  portions  of  Louisiana  had  greatly  aug- 
mented, as  well  as  that  from  New  Orleans  to  France  and  for- 
eign countries.  Regular  cargoes  of  flour,  bacon,  pork,  hides, 
leather,  tallow,  bear's  oil,  and  lumber  were  annually  transport- 
ed down  the  Mississippi  in  keel-boats  and  barges  to  New  Or- 
leans and  Mobile,  whence  they  were  shipped  to  France  and 
the  West  Indies.  In  their  return  voyages,  these  boats  and 
barges,  from  New  Orleans  and  Mobile,  supplied  the  Illinois 
and  Wabash  countries  with  rice,  indigo,  tobacco,  sugar,  cotton, 
and  European  fabrics.  The  two  extremes  of  Louisiana  pro- 
duced and  supplied  each  other  alternately  with  the  necessaries 
and  comforts  of  life  required  by  each  respectively.  The  mu- 
tual exchange  of  commodities  kept  up  a  constant  and  active 
communication  from  one  end  of  the  province  to  the  other. 
Boats,  barges,  and  pirogues  were  daily  plying  from  one  point 
to  another,  freighted  with  the  rude  products  of  a  new  and  grow- 
ing country.  The  great  high- way  s  of  commerce  were  the  deep 
and  solitary  channels  of  the  Mississippi  and  its  hundreds  of 
triiudtaries. 

[A.D.  1745.]  Such  was  the  growing  condition  of  Louisiana, 
until  hostilities  again  broke  out  between  the  English  and  French 
provinces,  ten  years  after  the  Acadian  war. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  settlements  had  been  liable  to  occa- 
sional disasters  and  unforeseen  dangers,  which  aflect  alike  the 
colony  in  its  infancy  and  the  more  powerful  state.  In  the  fall 
of  the  year  1745,  a  destructive  storm  swept  over  the  settle- 
ments of  Lower  TiOuisiana,  and  laid  waste  the  plantations,  de- 
stroying a  large  proportion  of  the  crops.  The  rice  crop  es- 
pecially, one  of  the  most  important  in  Lower  Louisiana,  was 
nearly  destroyed.  Rice,  for  several  years,  had  been  an  im- 
portant substitute  for  bread,  and  the  destruction  of  this  crop 
reduced  many  poor  emigrants  to  absolute  want.    Yet  the  ne- 


I 


i; 


206 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[dock  II. 


cessities  of  the  lower  country  were  supplied  by  timely  relief 
from  the  Illinois  country  and  from  the  Wabash.  Their  boats 
annually  descended  early  in  December,  and  returned  in  Feb- 
ruary. The  supply  of  breadstuff  from  Upper  Louisiana  this 
year,  by  some  accounts,  is  given  at  four  thousand  sacks,*  con- 
taining, probably,  one  hundred  pounds  each. 

[A.D.  1747-8.]  Louisiana  continued  to  prosper,  and  the 
settlements  continued  to  extend  upon  the  Wabash  and  upon 
the  tributaries  of  the  Illinois  and  the  Upper  Mississippi,  and 
even  as  far  as  the  upper  tributaies  of  the  Ohio.  The  pros- 
perity of  the  province  continued  without  interruption  until  the 
renewal  of  hostilities  by  the  English  provinces. 

[A.D.  1749.]  The  winter  of  1748-9  was  remarkable  for 
its  uncommon  rigor,  both  in  Upper  and  Lower  Louisiana. 
Such  was  the  severity  of  the  cold,  that  the  thriving  groves  of 
orange-trees  on  the  river  coast,  above  and  below  New  Orleans, 
were  entirely  killed. 

[A.D.  1750.]  For  several  years  past,  the  government  of 
the  settlements  on  the  Upper  Mississippi  and  Illinois  had  been 
conducted  by  La  Buissoniere,  commandant  at  Fort  Chartres, 
where  he  had  succeeded  the  unfortunate  Chevalier  D'Arta- 
guette. 

[A.D.  1751.]  In  the  following  autumn,  1751,  he  was  suc- 
ceeded in  the  command  of  Fort  Chartres  by  the  Chevalier 
Macarty,  who  left  New  Orleans  on  the  20th  of  August,  with  a 
small  detachment  of  troops  for  re-enforcing  the  posts  on  the 
Mississippi  and  Ohio  Rivers. f  He  continued  to  retain  the 
command  in  this  quarter  until  the  close  of  the  French  domin- 
ion on  the  Ohio. 

[A.D.  1752.]  The  settlements  on  the  Lower  Mississippi 
continued  to  augment  in  population,  by  the  frequent  arrivals 
of  emigrant  colonies  from  France  and  the  West  India  Islands. 
The  spirit  of  enterprise  and  agricultural  industry  began  to  de- 
velop the  resources  of  the  country,  and  to  increase  the  wealth 
and  happiness  of  the  people.  Plantations  lined  the  banks  of 
the  river  for  twenty  miles  below,  and  for  a  much  greater  dis- 
tance above  the  city.  In  this  distance  the  whole  coast  was  in 
a  fine  state  of  cultivation,  and  nearly  the  whole  was  securely 
protected  by  levees  against  the  floods  of  the  river.  The  prin- 
cipal staples  of  this  section  were  rice,  indigo,  corn,  and  tobac- 

*  Martiu'g  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  316.  t  Idem,  p.  321-3-24. 


A.D.  1752.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


207 


CO.  Rice  and  indigo  were  the  chief  crops  up  to  the  year  1750, 
about  which  time  cotton  had  been  introduced,  and  became  soon 
after  an  important  item  in  the  agricultural  products  of  Lower 
Louisiana  and  the  Illinois  country ;  yet,  from  the  extreme  dif- 
ficulty of  separating  the  cotton  from  the  seed,  it  did  not  consti- 
tute, in  any  portion  of  the  country,  the  entire  product  of  any 
plantation,  but  was  cultivated  in  small  quantities,  by  almost 
every  family,  as  a  useful  article  for  domestic  consumption. 

Tobacco  was  cultivated  in  considerable  quantities  in  the  up- 
lands near  Baton  Rouge  and  in  the  settlements  of  the  Natchez 
country.  To  encourage  the  extensive  cultivation  of  tobacco, 
the  royal  government  offered  a  moderate  bounty  on  the  arti- 
cle, and  t}  e  farmer-general  of  the  king  was  authorized  to  re- 
ceive into  the  king's  warehouses  all  the  tobacco  raised  in  the 
province,  at  the  rate  of  thirty  livres  per  hundred  pounds,  equal 
to  about  seven  dollars  the  hundred  weight.* 

About  this  time  a  cotton-gin,  invented  by  M.  Dubreuil,  which 
facilitated  the  operation  of  separating  the  cotton  fiber  from  the 
seed,  created  an  epoch  in  the  cultivation  of  cotton  in  Louisiana, 
and  it  began  to  enter  more  largely  into  the  product  of  the  plant- 
ations. 

Sugar-cane  had  not  yet  been  introduced  as  a  staple  product 
of  Louisiana.  The  first  attempt  to  cultivate  the  sugar-cane  in 
the  province  was  made  by  the  Jesuits  in  the  year  1751.  This 
year  they  had  introduced  a  quantity  of  cane  from  St.  Domin- 
go, together  with  several  negroes  who  were  acquainted  with 
the  process  of  manufacturing  sugar  from  the  juice.  They 
opened  a  small  plantation  on  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,  just 
above  the  old  city  of  New  Orleans,  and  within  the  limits  of 
the  second  municipality.f  The  following  year  attempts  were 
made  by  others  to  cultivate  the  plant  and  to  manufacture  it 
into  sugar.  Satisfied  with  the  success  of  the  first  attempts, 
many  others  soon  afterward  commenced  its  culture,  and  with- 
in a  few  years  most  of  the  plantations  above  and  below  the 
city,  for  many  miles,  had  introduced  the  culture  of  cane  on  a 
small  scale,  by  way  of  experiment.  Several  years  elapsed, 
when  the  Jesuits  and  some  others,  having  succeeded  even 
above  their  expectations,  M.  Dubreuil,  a  man  of  capital  and 
enterprise,  was  induced,  in  1758,  to  open  a  sugar  plantation  on 
a  large  scale.    He  erected  the  first  sugar-mill  in  Louisiana 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol  i.,  p.  320.  t  Idem. 


298 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[nt  OK  II. 


I 


upon  his  plantation,  which  occupied  the  lands  now  covered  by 
the  lower  part  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  and  known  as  the 
"  Suburb  of  St.  Marigny,"  below  the  third  municipality.  The 
enterprise  of  M.  Dubreuil  having  rewarded  him  with  an  abun- 
dant crop  and  a  ready  sale,  others  were  anxious  to  embark  in 
the  same  enterprise  with  large  capital. 

Thus,  before  the  close  of  the  year  1760,  sugar-cane  had  been 
fairly  introduced  as  one  of  the  staple  products  of  Louisiana ; 
yet  the  art  of  making  sugar  was  in  its  infancy.  The  sugar 
which  was  made  was  consumed  wholly  in  the  province,  and 
was  of  very  inferior  quality,  for  want  of  a  knowledge  of  the 
granulating  process.  Before  the  year  1705,  M.  Dubreuil,  M. 
Destrechan,  and  others,  had  succeeded  in  making  sugar  which 
answered  all  the  purposes  of  home  consumption.  Still,  the 
planters  had  not  learned  the  art  of  giving  it  a  fine,  dry,  granu- 
lated appearance,  such  as  was  produced  in  the  West  Indies. 
The  whole  product  of  the  province  had  been,  heretofore,  barely 
sufficient  for  domestic  consumption;  but  in  the  year  1765  one 
ship-load  of  sugar  was  exported  to  France ;  yet  so  imperfect 
had  been  the  granulating  process,  that  one  half  of  it  escaped 
from  the  casks  as  leakage  before  the  vessel  reached  her  des- 
tination.* This  was  the  first  export  of  sugar  from  Louisiana, 
and  the  commencement  of  her  trade  in  her  most  valuable  sta- 
ple, which  has  since  continued  to  increase  up  to  the  present 
time,  until  the  annual  crop  of  sugar  made  in  Louisiana  varied, 
betvveen  the  years  1840  and  1845,  from  110,000  to  115,000 
hogsheads,  besides  as  many  barrels  of  molasses.f 

In  the  mean  time,  the  British  emissaries  from  the  Atlantic 
provinces  resumed  their  efforts  to  rouse  the  Chickasas  to  a  re- 
newal of  hostilities  against  the  French  of  Louisiana,  as  well  as 
against  the  trade  carried  on  between  the  colonies  on  the  Up- 
per Mississippi  and  the  city  of  New  Orleans.  The  Northern 
or  Acadian  war  had  been  terminated,  and  peace  had  been  re- 
stored between  the  two  powers,  England  and  France,  by  the 
treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle,  on  the  18th  day  of  October,  1748. 
Tranquillity  had  been  likewise  restored  to  all  the  British  prov- 
inces along  the  Atlantic  coast,  and  they  now  again  had  leisure 
to  indulge  in  their  former  practices  of  intrigue  with  the  South- 
ern Indians,  and  especially  with  the  Choctas  and  Chickasas. 

''  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  330. 

t  See  New  Orleans  Annual  Commercial  Price-enrrent  for  1840-1843,  &c. 


A.D.  1752.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


299 


Traders  and  agents  from  Carolina  and  Georgia  introduced  vast 
quantities  of  British  goods  and  commodities  of  Indian  trade, 
and  abundantly  supplied  almost  every  Chocta  and  Chickas& 
village  as  far  west  as  the  Yazoo  and  Mississippi  Rivers,  and 
wholly  within  the  territory  claimed  by  France.*  British 
trading-posts  were  established  in  some  of  the  towns,  and  pro- 
tected by  regular  fortifications,  which  the  English  had  in- 
structed them  to  build.f 

The  traders  and  emissaries  lost  no  opportunity  to  poison  the 
minds  of  these  tribes  against  the  French  of  Louisiana.  As 
early  as  1750,  they  had  succeeded  in  rousing  the  Choctas  into 
actual  hostilities  with  their  old  allies  the  French.  This  war, 
however,  was  brought  to  a  close,  and  the  Choctas  being  con- 
ciliated, again  entered  into  a  treaty  of  peace  with  their  old 
friends  before  the  beginning  of  the  year  1751.  J  Yet  the  Eng- 
lish emissaries  continued  their  intrigues  with  the  Chickasas, 
losing  no  opportunity  of  exciting  them  to  hostilities  and  depre- 
dations upon  the  French  settlements  and  trade  from  the  Tom- 
bigby  River  to  the  Mississippi.  Simultaneously  with  these 
movements  in  the  South,  the  province  of  Virginia,  under  the 
influence  of  the  "  Ohio  Company,"  and  Governor  Robert  Din- 
widdie,  a  member  of  the  company,  led  the  way  in  making 
similar  encroachments  and  intrigues,  supported  by  military 
force,  upon  the  eastern  tributaries  of  the  Upper  Ohio  River.  In 
this  latter  region,  agents,  emissaries,  and  traders  were  distrib- 
uted for  the  purpose  of  gaining  the  Indians  over  to  the  Eng- 
lish interest,  and  to  induce  them  to  exclude  the  French  traders 
from  the  Ohio  region.  Thus  the  object  of  the  British  authori- 
ties was  to  excite  finally  the  whole  of  the  Northern  and  South- 
em  tribes  simultaneously  against  the  French  settlements,  from 
Mobile  and  New  Orleans  to  Canada. 

*  The  English  never  had  acquired  any  right  to  the  territory  west  of  the  mountains 
from  the  Monongahela  on  the  north  to  the  Alabama  and  Tombigby  on  the  south.  The 
French  had  discovered  and  explored  the  whole  regions  claimed  by  them ;  and  treaties 
with  the  different  tribes  inhabiting  the  same  gave  them  a  right  of  jurisdiction  or  sov- 
ereignty over  the  country  superior  to  any  claim  which  England  could  set  up.  The 
French  had  explored  most  of  the  immense  territory  comprised  in  Louisiana,  as  defined 
in  Crozut's  charter,  as  early  as  the  year  1720,  twelve  years  before  the  first  English  set- 
tlement in  Georgia,  and  when  the  settlements  on  the  remote  frontiers  of  Virginia  did 
not  extend  as  far  west  as  the  Blue  Ridge.  In  opposition  to  this  right  of  possession, 
England  had  no  other  claim  than  the  former  royal  grants,  made  to  individuals  and  com- 
panies, for  vast  regions  of  unexplored  and  unknown  lands  already  in  possession  of  the 
French.  t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  321,  322. 

X  Governor  Vaudreuil's  Report  to  Ministry,  Jauaary  12th,  1751,  among  the  French 
Colonial  Records  in  the  Libroiy  of  the  State  of  Louisiana. — Docamenta  Nos.  230  and 
SMS. 


'I 
1 ' 

i\ 

jl  ll 

M 
I' 

f 


300 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  II. 


To  protect  the  settlements  of  the  South  against  the  incur- 
sions of  the  Chickasfts,  which  were  now  becoming  very  annoy- 
ing to  the  province  of  Louisiana,  the  governor,  the  Marquis  de 
Vaudreuil,  determined  to  march  a  strong  force  into  the  heart 
of  the  Chickasa  country.  The  force  collected  and  organized 
for  this  expedition  amounted  to  seven  hundred  regulars  and 
militia,  besides  a  large  body  of  Choctas  and  other  Indian  allies 
from  the  waters  of  the  Tombigby  and  Alabama  Rivers.  The 
route  of  invasion  was  the  same  which  had  been  pursued  by 
Bienville  in  the  year  1730.  The  fort  formerly  built  by  him  on 
the  Tombigby  was  repaired  and  enlarged  for  the  general  ren- 
dezvous. From  this  point  he  marched  into  the  Chickasa  coun- 
try, resolved  to  chastise  them  severely  for  their  depredations. 

Yet,  like  all  other  expeditions  against  the  Chickasas,  it  was 
destined  to  prove  a  failure.  The  Chickasas,  instructed  by  their 
English  friends,  had  learned  the  best  mode  of  fortifying  their 
towns.  They  were  flanked  by  regular  block-houses,  surround- 
ed by  a  deep  and  wide  ditch,  within  which  was  a  tall  and 
strong  palisade  inclosure.  In  the  towns  thus  protected,  the 
Indians  chose  to  remain  behind  their  defenses,  and  not  to  ven- 
ture into  the  open  plain  against  the  overwhelming  force  of  the 
French.  The  marquis,  unprovided  with  artillery  to  effect  a 
breach  in  the  works,  and  having  in  several  assaults  failed  to 
injure  the  enemy,  or  to  draw  them  from  their  coverts,  deter- 
mined that  it  was  useless  to  spend  time  in  an  ineffectual  siege. 
He  concluded,  therefore,  to  destroy  their  resources  by  laying 
waste  the  country,  ravaging  their  fields,  burning  their  com  and 
their  deserted  villages.  This  object  being  accomplished  as  far 
as  practicable,  he  caused  a  strong  detachment  to  be  stationed 
as  a  garrison  in  the  fort  on  the  Tombigby,  as  a  barrier  against 
future  incursions  from  that  quarter.  Matters  being  thus  ar- 
ranged, he  set  out  on  his  return  to  New  Orleans,  by  no  means 
pleased  with  the  laurels  he  had  won  from  the  Chickasas. 

Among  the  benevolent  efforts  of  the  king's  government  to 
promote  the  increase  of  population  in  Louisiana,  for  many  years 
under  the  royal  governors,  was  the  humane  policy  of  sending 
every  year  at  the  royal  expense  a  large  number  of  worthy  but 
poor  girls  to  the  province,  in  charge  of  suitable  agents  or 
guardians,  with  instructions  to  bestow  them  in  marriage,  to- 
gether with  a  small  dowry,  to  such  of  the  soldiers  as  by  their 
good  behavior  were  entitled  to  an  honorable  discharge  from 


A.D.  1754.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


301 


the  service.  The  dowry  allotted  to  each  soldier  who  married 
one  of  these  females  was  a  small  tract  of  land,  one  cow  and 
calf,  one  cock  and  five  hens,  a  gun  and  ammunition,  an  ax  and 
a  hoe,  together  with  a  supply  of  garden  seeds.  Thus  the  newly- 
married  pair  were  enabled  to  begin  the  world  as  independent 
heads  of  families.*  Thus  commenced  many  useful  and  worthy 
families  of  the  French  population  of  Louisiana  previous  to  the 
year  1751,  which  witnessed  the  last  arrival  of  these  young 
females. 

About  this  time  the  difficulties  between  the  French  posts  and 
settlements  on  the  head  streams  of  the  Alleghany  and  the  up- 
per portion  of  the  Ohio,  and  the  provincial  authorities  of  Vir- 
ginia, in  favor  of  the  "  Ohio  Company,"  and  some  other  inter- 
ested individuals,  began  to  assume  a  more  threatening  attitude. 
The  French  continued  to  advance  from  Presque  Isle,  of  Lake 
Erie,  upon  the  tributaries  of  the  Alleghany,  and  their  advance 
was  protected  by  military  posts  properly  fortified.  The  grant 
originally  made  by  the  British  crown  to  the  Ohio  Company  in 
the  year  1748,  for  six  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land,  had  been 
transferred  chiefly  to  the  Washington  family  and  to  Governor 
Dinwiddle,  t  These  persons,  not  more  than  ten  in  number,  en- 
deavored, by  all  the  influences  within  their  control,  to  rouse 
the  hostile  feelings  of  the  English  colonists  in  Virginia,  Penn- 
sylvania,, and  New  York  against  the  encroachments  of  the 
French,  with  such  effect  that  a  collision  and  active  hostilities 
between  the  troops  of  the  two  powers  were  ultimately  pro- 
duced. 

[A.D.  1753.]  Near  the  close  of  the  year  1753,  the  Marquis 
de  Vaudreuil  was  advanced  to  the  governor-generalship  of  New 
France,  or  Canada,  when  M.  Kerlerec,  a  captain  in  the  royal 
navy,  succeeded  him  as  Governor  of  Louisiana.  M.  Auber- 
ville  was  commissaire-ordonnateur. 

[A.D.  1754.]  At  length  the  collisions  between  the  advanced 
traders  and  military  detachments  of  France  and  Virginia  upon 
the  head  waters  of  the  Ohio  had  brought  on  a  state  of  actual 
hostilities  between  the  troops  of  England  and  France.  The 
firsthostile  act  was  on  the  part  of  the  Virginians,  under  the 
command  of  Lieutenant-colonel  Washington.     It  consisted  in 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  321. 

t  See  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington,  vol.  i.  and  ii.  A  full  account  of  the  grant 
to  the  Ohio  Company,  and  of  some  other  royal  grants  west  of  the  mountains,  may  be 
seen  in  voL  ii.,  p.  478-485. 


302 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


the  attack  and  capture  of  a  small  detachment  of  French  troops 
under  the  command  of  M.  Jumonville,  after  having  slain  one 
third  of  their  number,  including  their  commander.* 

France  began  now  to  re-enforce  her  troops  on  tiie  Ohio,  pre- 
paratory to  a  military  defense  of  the  country.  In  the  autumn 
of  the  same  year,  M.  Favrot,  with  four  companies,  of  fifty  men 
each,  with  a  large  supply  of  provisions  and  ammunition,  was 
dispatched  from  New  Orleans  to  the  headquarters  of  Fort  Char- 
tres,  for  the  use  of  the  posts  on  the  Ohio. 

During  the  past  year  strict  military  discipline  and  subordi- 
nation were  rigidly  enforced,  and  sometimes  with  extreme  rigor. 
In  the  summer,  the  soldiers  of  a  military  post  on  Cat  Island,  ex- 
asperated at  the  cruelty  and  avarice  of  their  commander,  M. 
Roux,  rebelled  against  his  authority  and  put  him  to  death. 
Afterward,  failing  in  their  object  of  reaching  the  English  set- 
tlements of  Carolina,  they  were  captured  by  a  band  of  Choctds 
sent  in  pursuit,  and  brought  back  for  punishment,  except  one, 
who  killed  himself  rather  than  submit.  The  most  horrid  mili- 
tary execution  was  inflicted  upon  the  ringleaders ;  two  were 
broken  upon  the  wheel,  and  one,  who  was  a  Swiss  from  the 
regiment  of  Karrer,  after  the  immemorial  usage  of  his  coun- 
try, was  placed  alive  in  a  wooden  coffin,  and  by  two  sergeants 
sawed  in  two  with  the  whip-saw. 

The  colonial  authorities  were  active  in  their  efforts  to  place 
the  province  in  the  most  defensible  condition,  and  the  govern- 
or, M.  Kerlerec,  and  the  ordonnateur,  M.  Auberville,  made  ac- 
tive preparations  to  work  the  lead  and  copper  mines  of  Illinois. 
These  mines  were  known  to  be  inexhaustible,  and  the  minister 
was  desired  to  send  additional  miners  from  Paris. 

Emigrants  still  continued  to  arrive  from  France,  and  among 
the  arrivals  of  the  year  1754  were  a  large  number  of  families 
from  Lorrain  for  a  settlement  in  the  parish  of  Des  AUemands.f 

From  this  time  began  the  contest  between  France  and  Eng- 
land for  the  possession  of  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  a  con- 
test which  was  waged  with  varied  success  for  eight  years,  un- 
til finally  the  tide  of  war  set  in  favor  of  Great  Britain,  and 
France  was  compelled  at  length  to  surrender  first  one,  and  then 
another  of  her  military  positions  in  New  France ;  until  at  last. 


*  For  a  more  full  account  of  this  traniaction,  see  chap.  iii.  of  this  book. — See,  also, 
Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  324-326, 
t  Colouial  B«cords  in  State  Library  of  Louisiana,  Doc.  No.  S40. 


A.D.  1755.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE   MISHldSlPn. 


303 


driven  by  stern  necessity,  the  king  sought  peace  at  the  expense 
of  a  treaty  which  confirmed  to  Great  Britain  the  whole  of  Can- 
ada, or  New  France,  and  all  the  eastern  half  of  Louisiana. 

[A.D.  1755.]  Although  the  province  of  Louisiana  was  in- 
volved in  the  prosecution  of  this  war,  yet  her  remote  situation 
and  her  inaccessible  position  secured  her  settlements  antl  towns 
from  the  horrors  of  invasion,  with  its  attendant  rapine  and 
bloodshed.  The  Mississippi  and  Ohio  Rivers  were  the  great 
high-ways  of  intercourse  between  New  Orleans  and  the  seat 
of  war  upon  the  lakes  and  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  these  were 
in  the  exclusive  possession  of  the  French  and  their  Indian  al- 
lies until  1750. 

Early  in  this  war,  the  cruel  jealousy  and  the  wicked  policy 
of  the  English  court  prompted  them  to  perpetrate  one  of  those 
national  atrocities  which  have  so  long  tarnished  the  honor  of 
British  conquests.  In  the  war  which  was  terminated  by  the 
treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle,  France  had  ceded  to  Great  Britain 
the  whole  province  of  Acadie,  comprising  the  present  provin- 
ces of  New  Brunswick  and  Nova  Scotia.  Now,  when  that 
power  had  resolved  to  possess  herself  of  the  whole  of  Canada, 
lest  the  poor  Acadians,  on  their  bleak,  sterile,  and  rocky  shores, 
should  sympathize  with  their  brethren  on  the  St.  Lawrence, 
and  make  common  cause  with  Canada,  England  resolved  to  ex- 
terminate them  as  a  people.  Although  she  shrunk  from  the 
atrocity  of  a  wholesale  murder  in  cold  blood,  yet  she  deemed 
it  consistent  with  her  policy,  before  they  had  offered' any  re- 
sistance, or  had  evinced  a  disposition  to  reject  her  authority,  to 
tear  them  away  from  their  homes  and  possessions,  and  throw 
them  helpless  and  destitute  upon  that  mercy  which  protects  the 
fowls  of  the  air. 

To  accomplish  this  purpose,  a  number  of  vessels  were  dis- 
patched to  Acadie,  where  they  were  filled  with  the  poor,  kid- 
napped inhabitants,  who  were  torn  by  armed  ruffians,  in  the 
character  of  British  soldiers,  from  their  houses  and  possessions, 
and  ruthlessly  transported  to  distant  regions.  Here,  less  mer- 
ciful to  them  than  to  the  kidnapped  Africans,  who  are  provid- 
ed with  masters  and  a  home,  the  English  threw  them,  forlorn 
and  destitute,  upon  the  wide  world  for  a  support,  caring  but 
little  whether  they  lived  or  died.  Hundreds,  nay,  thousands,  of 
these  wretched  people,  thus  barbarously  torn  from  their  homes 
and  from  their  country,  were  landed  in  detached  parties  on  dif- 


ao4 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  II. 


ferent  points  of  the  barren  and  sandy  coast  of  Delaware,  New 
Jersey,  Maryland,  and  Virginia.  Destitute  and  helpless,  like 
so  many  dumb  beasts,  they  were  turned  loose  to  shifl  for  thein< 
selves,  or  to  perish  of  hunger  and  cold.* 

Lest  a  lingering  desire  of  home  might  prompt  them  to  seek 
again  their  country  and  former  abodes,  they  had  been  stripped 
of  all  the  money  and  available  means  by  which  they  might  have 
returned,  their  fields  and  inclosures  had  been  laid  waste,  their 
houses  and  possessions  were  burned  before  their  eyes — thus  at 
once  sweeping  away  the  last  inducement  for  return.  Upon  the 
barren  shores  of  the  British  provinces  were  these  wretched  peo- 
ple turned  loose  to  wander  they  knew  not  where ;  strangers  in 
manners  and  language,  they  had  no  other  hope,  or  protection 
from  famine  and  death,  than  the  generous  sympathy  of  the  An- 
glo-Americans. From  these  they  received  generous  aid,  and 
their  necessities  were  liberally  supplied  by  the  public  authori- 
ties, as  well  as  by  individuals.  Yet  they  were  among  those 
who  spoke  the  language  of  their  oppressors,  although  endued 
with  better  hearts. 

A  wilderness  of  more  than  a  thousand  miles  in  extent  sepa- 
rated them  from  their  countrymen  on  the  Illinois,  yet  they  de- 
termined to  seek  some  land  where  the  spotless  banner  of  France 
still  waved  for  their  protection.  Loathing  all  connection  with 
those  who  bore  even  the  name  of  their  oppressors,  they  deter- 
mined to  turn  their  faces  toward  the  West,  and  took  up  their 
weary  pilgrimage  through  the  trackless  wilderness  across  the 
Alleghany  Mountains  to  the  Ohio  River.  After  a  tedious  and 
painful  march  of  several  weeks,  they  arrived  upon  the  banks  of 
the  "  Belle  Riviere,"  upon  whose  gentle  current,  provided  with 
boats  and  barges,  they  floated  down  to  the  Mississippi,  whose 
majestic  flood  soon  conveyed  them  to  their  countrymen  of  New 
Orleans.  , 

The  arrival  of  the  Acadians  in  New  Orleans  was  equalled 
only  by  the  scene  presented  by  the  women  and  children  who 
had  been  rescued  from  the  Natchez  Indians  twenty-five  years 
before.  All  houses,  and  hearts  too,  were  open  to  relieve  their 
distress  and  to  minister  to  their  wants.  Charity  herself  walked 
the  streets  personified  in  acts  of  kindness.  The  governor  and 
ordonnateur-commissaire  ordered  a  portion  of  land  to  be  allot- 
ted to  each  family  for  their  permanent  homes.     Thus  a  settle- 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  326-329. 


A,D.  1750.] 


VALLEY    or   TUB    MIR«IMMIPPI. 


806 


heir 

the 

and 

nks  of 

with 

vhose 

New 

lalled 
who 
years 
their 
alked 
r  and 
allot- 
ettle- 


ment  vvn«  formed  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  ft  short  distance 
above  the  Gorman  coast,  formerly  assigned  to  the  colonists  of 
Law  from  the  Arkansas ;  each  family  was  supplied  with  iin* 
plements  of  husbandry,  seeds,  and  rations  from  the  king's  stores, 
until  they  could  procure  means  for  their  own  support.  The 
settlement  thus  formed  was  known  and  designated  as  the  "  Aca- 
dian Coast,"  where  many  of  their  descendants  are  found  at  this 
day,  who  have  lost  but  little  of  their  paternal  hatred  for  the 
English  name.* 

[A.D.  1750.]  The  province  of  Louisiana,  although  remote 
from  the  seat  of  war,  labored  under  many  pecuniary  embar- 
rassments, growing  out  of  the  war  waged  in  Canada.  The 
whole  country  was  literally  inundated  with  government  drafts 
and  notes  which  it  was  unable  to  redeem.  The  embarrass- 
ments were  such  as  necessarily  result  from  a  bankrupt  treasu- 
ry and  a  ruinous  paper  currency,  ever  fluctuating  and  of  un- 
certain value.  This  embarrassment  continued  to  increase  un- 
til the  close  of  the  war  by  the  treaty  of  1763. 

[A.D.  1758.]  In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1758,  the  French 
being  compelled  to  abandon  the  post  of  Fort  Duquesne  on  the 
Ohio,  the  garrison  and  military  stores  arrived  at  New  Orleans 
about  the  1st  of  December,  when  new  barracks  were  erected 
for  them  in  the  city. 

[A.D.  1759.]  Early  in  the  spring  of  1759,  Fort  Massac 
was  built  by  the  French,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Ohio,  about 
forty  miles  above  its  mouth,  and  continued  to  be  occupied  by 
the  French  as  a  garrison  post  until  after  the  termination  of  the 
war. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  tide  of  war  in  the  northeast  had  set 
against  France,  and  the  arms  of  Great  Britain  had  been  triumph- 
ant in  Canada.  One  strong-hold  after  another  had  been  lost  to 
France,  and  it  became  evident  that  all  Canada  would  fall  un- 
der the  dominion  of  Great  Britain.  Under  these  prospects,  a 
large  number  of  Canadian  French  determined  to  escape  such 
a  calamity  as  they  deemed  the  British  yoke,  by  abandoning 
their  country  and  joining  their  countrymen  in  Louisiana.  Many 
of  them,  accordingly,  departed  from  Canada  by  way  of  the 
lakes,  and  thence  through  the  Wabash  and  Illinois  Rivers  to 
the  Mississippi.  Those  who  reached  Lower  Louisiana  sought 
settlements  mostly  west  of  the  Mississippi,  on  the  bayous  and 

*  Martiu's  Loaiaiana,  vol  i.,  p.  329. 

Vol.  I.— U 


300 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  II. 


prairies  of  Attackapas,  Oppelousas,  and  Avoyelles.*  This 
emigration  added  a  large  population  to  Lower  Louisiana,  and 
also  augmented  the  settlements  on  the  Upper  Mississippi.  Lou- 
isiana continued  under  the  administration  of  Kerlerec  until  the 
close  of  the  war,  and  his  government  was  prompt  and  energetic. 

[A.D.  1760.]  Although  Spain  had  made  common  cause 
with  France  against  Great  Britain,  the  latter  had  completed 
the  conquest  of  Canada,  during  the  year  1760,  by  the  reduction 
of  Montreal.  The  fortresses  of  Quebec,  Ticonderoga,  Crown 
Point,  and  Niagara,  had  fallen  under  the  British  arms  during 
the  summer  and  autumn  of  the  previous  year.f 

[A.D.  1762.]  At  length  hostilities  ceased  between  the  three 
great  powers ;  and  peace  was  ratified  by  the  treaty  of  Paris, 
dated  the  16th  of  February,  1763.  By  this  treaty,  France  ceded 
and  confirmed  to  Great  Britain  all  her  northern  provinces, 
commonly  known  as  New  France,  or  Canada ;  embracing  all 
the  countries  contiguous  to  the  great  lakes  and  the  St.  Law- 
rence River  to  its  mouth,  together  with  all  the  territory,  forts, 
and  settlements  south  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  including  Acadie 
and  Cape  Breton  on  the  Atlantic  coast,  south  of  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence.  France  also  ceded  to  Great  Britain  all  that  por- 
tion of  Louisiana  lying  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi  Riv- 
er, from  its  source  to  the  Bayou  Iberville,  or  Manchac.  The 
irrevocable  boundary  between  the  English  and  French  provin- 
ces was  to  be  an  imaginary  line  along  the  middle  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi River,  from  its  source  to  the  Bayou  Manchac ;  thence 
along  said  bayou  and  the  Amite  River  to  Lake  Maurepas ; 
thence  through  the  middle  of  Lakes  Maurepas,  Pontchartrain, 
and  Borgne  to  the  sea.  France  also  ceded  the  port  and  river 
of  Mobile.  In  the  mean  time,  Spain  had  ceded  to  Great  Brit- 
ain the  whole  of  Florida,  then  embracing  all  the  coast  east  of 
the  Perdido  River  and  Bay,  to  the  St.  Mary's  River  on  the 
Atlantic  coast.  Thus,  by  this  treaty,  England  acquired  virtual 
possession  of  all  North  America  east  of  the  Mississippi  River ; 
and  by  the  stipulations  of  the  treaty,  the  navigation  of  the  river, 
from  its  source  to  its  mouth,  was  to  remain  forever  free  to  the 
subjects  of  both  powers. 

[A.D.  1763.]  In  the  mean  time,  the  King  of  France,  by  a 
secret  treaty,  ratified  on  the  3d  of  November,  1762,  had  agreed 


I 


*  Martin'a  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  336. 

t  For  the  reduction  of  Fort  Duqaeine  oa  the  Ohio,  lee  chap.  iii.  of  book  ii. 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPL 


807 


by  a 
rreed 


to  cede  and  deliver  to  the  King  of  Spain  the  residue  of  Louisi- 
ana, embracing  all  the  territory  on  the  west  side  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  its  remotest  tributaries,  and  including  the  Island  of 
New  Orleans  on  the  east  side,  south  of  the  Bayou  Manchac. 

This  completed  the  dismemberment  of  Louisiana,  which 
was  thus  divided  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain.  The  ju- 
risdiction of  each  of  these  powers  was  subsequently  extended 
over  their  respective  portions. 

By  a  decree  of  the  king  in  council,  dated  October  7th,  1  /63, 
Florida  was  divided  into  two  governments,  known  as  East 
Florida  and  West  Florida.  West  Florida,  by  this  decree,  was 
to  extend  from  the  Mississippi,  north  of  the  Bayou  Iberville, 
eastward  to  the  Chattahoochy  River ;  bounded  on  the  north 
by  the  thirty-first  parallel  of  latitude,  and  on  the  south  by  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  East  Florida  was  bounded  by  the  Chattahoo- 
chy on  the  west,  and  extended  to  the  Atlantic  on  the  east ; 
comprising  the  whole  peninsula  as  far  north  as  the  St.  Mary's 
River,  or  the  southern  boundary  of  Georgia. 

In  February  following.  Captain  George  Johnston,  of  the  Brit- 
ish army,  took  formal  possession  of  West  Florida  in  the  name 
of  the  British  king.  Pensacola  was  made  the  capital  of  West 
Florida,  and  St.  Augustine  of  East  Florida. 

Soon  after  Governor  Johnston  entered  upon  his  duties,  the 
Court  of  St.  James  was  informed  that  there  were  important 
settlements  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi,  which  were  north 
of  the  thirty-first  parallel  of  latitude,  the  northern  boundary  of 
West  Florida.  To  embrace  these  settlements,  a  second  decree 
of  the  king  in  council  was  issued  on  the  10th  of  June,  1764, 
extending  the  northern  limit  of  West  Florida  as  far  as  the  mouth 
of  the  Yazoo  River.  The  northern  limit  was  henceforth  to  be 
an  imaginary  line  drawn  due  east  from  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo 
to  the  Chattahoochy  River.* 

That  portion  of  Louisiana  north  of  the  Yazoo  remained  a 
portion  of  the  Illinois  government.  The  jurisdiction  of  Great 
Britain  was  not  formally  extended  over  the  settlements  on  the 
Upper  Mississippi  and  Illinois  until  the  year  1765,  when  Cap- 
tain Sterling,  from  Detroit,  assumed  the  duties  of  commandant 
of  Fort  Chartrc    ;ind  governor  of  the  Illinois  settlements.! 

In  the  mean  time,  Spain  had  formally  assumed  possession  of 
Western  Louisiana,  including  the  Island  of  New  Orleans.     The 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  342,  343.        t  See  book  iii.,  chap,  iv.,  of  tliis  work. 


308 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book    II. 


disappointed  inhabitants  yielded  a  reluctant  obedience  to  the 
Spanish  authority,  and  the  civil  jurisdiction  of  Spain  was  not 
enforced  in  Upper  Louis'ana  until  the  year  1769.* 

Thus  terminated  the  dominion  and  power  of  France  in  North 
America.  From  the  first  permanent  settlements  on  the  St. 
Lawrence,  she  had  held  Canada,  or  New  France,  nearly  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years;  she  had  discovered,  occupied,  and 
held  dominion  over  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  more  than 
eighty  years,  until  it  had  become  a  flourishing  and  important 
province. 

The  entire  continental  possessions  of  France  in  North  Amer- 
ica originally  comprised  New  France,  or  Canada,  with  the 
provinces  of  Cape  Breton  and  Aoadie,  south  of  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence  on  the  north,  embracing  the  whole  Valley  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  and  the  Great  Lakes ;  in  the  west  and  south, 
the  vast  province  of  Louisiana,  comprising  the  whole  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi. 

[A.D.  1764.]  From  this  time  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi 
was  virtually  divided  between  the  two  great  European  pow- 
ers of  Great  Britain  and  Spain.  The  dominion  of  the  former 
was  destined  to  be  of  short  duration,  and  to  be  superseded  by 
a  new  power  heretofore  unknown,  a  power  which  was  ulti- 
mately to  swallow  up  the  dominion  of  Spain  also.  This  new 
power  was  to  be  the  United  States  of  America,  the  land  of 
freedom  and  the  rights  of  man,  the  bulwark  of  human  liberty 
and  the  asylum  for  the  oppressed.  This  great  confederated 
Republic  now  holds  dominion  over  the  whole  Valley  of  the 
Mississippi,  from  the  sea  to  its  remotest  tributaries. 

,  *  See  book  iv.,  chap,  i.,  of  tbifl  work. 


BOOK    III. 

GREAT  BRITAIN  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


Iti- 

lew 

of 

srty 

ited 

the 


CHAPTER  I. 

EXPULSION     OF    THE     FRENCH     FROM    TUB    OHIO     REGION. INDIAN 

HOSTILITIES   UNTIL  THE   CLOSE   OP  PONTIAc's   WAR. A.D.    1757 

TO   1764. 

Argument. — England  persists  in  occupying  the  Upper  Ohio  Region. — The  Frontier  An- 
glo-American Settlements  driven  back  in  1757. — Indian  Hostilities  West  of  tlie  Blue 
Ridge. — Shawanese  Incursions  in  1757. — Sandy  Creek  Expedition  under  Colonel 
Lewis. — Peace  established  with  the  Cherokees. — Fort  Loudon  built  on  South  Branch 
of  Holston. — First  White  Settlements  on  the  Holston  in  1758.-^Exploration8  of  Dr. 
Walker  and  others  in  1758,  and  previously. — Forces  for  Reduction  of  Fort  Duqucsne. 
—Major  Grant's  Defeat  at  Fort  Duquesne. — French  and  Indians  attack  Colonel  Bou- 
quet's Camp  at  Loyal  Hanna. — General  Forbes  advances  to  Fort  Duquesne. — Oc- 
impies  the  deserted  Post. — "  Fort  Pitt"  commenced. — Fort  Burd  erected  on  the  Mo- 
nongahela,  1759. — Cherokees  resume  Hostilities. — A  Portion  of  the  Cherokees  averse 
to  Hostilities. — Friendly  Cherokee  Deputation  imprisoned  at  Fort  George. — Chero- 
kees attempt  to  rescue  their  Chiefs. — General  Cherokee  War  provoked  in  1760. — 
Capture  and  Massacre  of  Fort  Loudon. — Colonel  Grant  invades  tlic  Cherokee  Na- 
tion.— Peace  with  Cherokees  restored  in  1761. — British  Arms  victorious  in  New 
France  and  Canada. — English  Settlements  from  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  advance 
upon  the  Waters  of  the  Ohio  in  1762-3. — Treaty  of  Paris  confirms  to  England  all 
Canada  and   Eastern   Louisiana.  —  The  Northwestern  Indians  refuse   their  As- 
sent to  the  Treaty. — The  "  Six  Nations." — ^Their  territorial  Limits. — The  W^estem 
Tribes  resolve  to  resist  the  Advance  of  the  English  Power. — The  King's  conciliatory 
Proclamation  of  1763. — Locations  and  Grants  made  on  the  Waters  of  the  Ohio ;  on 
Cheat  River. — Indian  League  under  Pontiac,  the  great  Ottaw&  Chief,  or  Emperor. — 
His  Character  and  Plan  of  offensive  Operations. — Catholic  Missionaries  and  Jesuits 
not  Instigators  of  the  War. — Terrible  Onset  of  Indian  Hostilities. — Traders  first  Vic- 
tims.— Capture  of  the  Western  Posts  by  Indians. — Capture  of  Presque  Isle ;  of  Fort 
Miamis ;  of  Mackinaw.— Massacre  of  the  Garrison  and  Inmates.— Siege  of  Fort 
Pitt. — Colonel  Bouquet  defeats  Indian  Ambuscade  at  Turtle  Creek. — Protracted 
Siege  of  Detroit  by  Pontiac  in  Person. — The  Defense  by  Major  Gladwyn.— Incidents 
of  Indian  Warfare  and  savage  Barbarity. — A  Detachment  of  Troops  with  Supplies 
for  Detroit  cut  off  by  Indians. — Captain  Dalzel  slain  in  a  Sortie. — Exposed  Condition 
of  the  western  and  southwestern  Frontiers. — Indian  Hostilities  in  Pennsylvania. — 
"Massacre  of  Wyoming." — Hostilities  in  Virginia,  at  Muddy  Creek  and  Big  Lev- 
els.— Attack  on  Fort  Ligonier. — Fort  London.  —  Hostilities  on  Susquehanna;  ou 
Greenbrier  and  Jackson  Riven. — Terror  of  eastern  Part  of  New  York. — Marauding 
Bands  of  Indians  on  the  southwestern  Frontier. — Lawless  white  Men  on  the  Fron- 
tiers.— Outrages  and  Massacres  committed  by  the  Paxton  Boys. — Origin  and  De- 
signs of  this  Banditti. — Military  Movements  of  the  English  Forces  toward  the  Fron- 
tier.— Advance  of  General  Bradstreet  to  Niagara. — Treaty  of  Niagara. — Treaty  of 
Detroit. — Pontiac  opposes  the  Treaty. — Colonel  Bouquet  invades  the  Indian  Country 
upon  the  Muskingum. — Forms  a  Treaty. — Treaty  of  the  "German  Flats"  with  the 
"  Six  Nations." — Peace  proclaimed  December  5th,  1764. 

[A.D.  1757.]    In  another  portion  of  this  work,*  we  have 
shown  that  Great  Britain  had  omitted  no  opportunity  for  ex- 

*  See  book  ii.,  chapter  iii.,  "Advance  cf  the  French  upon  the  Upper  Ohio,"  tec. 


310 


HISTOBY    or   THE 


[book   III. 


pelling  her  powerful  rival  from  the  beautiful  and  fertile  regions 
drained  by  the  Ohio.  We  have  shown  that  she  had  never 
ceased  to  urge  her  claim  to  the  regions  west  of  the  mountains, 
which  were  virtually  in  the  possession  of  France  ;  that  royal 
grants  had  been  made  to  individuals  and  companies  for  extens- 
ive bodies  of  land  upon  the  eastern  tributaries  of  the  Ohio,  for 
the  encouragement  of  emigration  to  that  quarter  ;*  that  Eng- 
lish subjects  had  sent  agents  to  explore  the  country,  and  to  es- 
tablish trading-posts  among  the  Indian  tribes  ;  that  the  French 
had  refused  to  acknowledge  the  claim  of  Great  Britain  to  any 
lands  west  of  the  mountains,  and  had  driven  back  the  agents 
and  traders  of  the  Ohio  Company ;  that  subsequently  they  had 
captured  two  detachments  of  troops,  sent  out  under  the  author- 
ity of  the  province  of  Virginia  ;  and,  finally,  that  they  had,  in 
the  summer  of  1755,  routed  and  totally  defeated  a  large  com- 
bined army  of  provincials  and  royal  troops,  under  the  com- 
mand of  General  Braddock. 

These  successive  reverses  in  this  quarter,  besides  others  oi 
a  similar  character  in  other  parts  of  Canada  and  New  France, 
had  put  a  check  to  the  military  operations  of  Great  Britain 
west  of  the  mountains  for  three  years.  During  this  period,  the 
frontier  settlements  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia  east  of  the 
mountains  were  kept  in  a  state  of  continual  apprehension  from 
Indian  incursions,  robl  '^ries,  and  murders.  The  government 
of  Great  Britain  was  absorbed  in  the  contest  with  France  on 
the  ocean,  and  upon  the  St.  Lawrence  and  other  eastern  por- 
tions of  New  France.  The  provinces  were  left  to  contend 
against  the  savages,  without  aid  or  control,  until  Fortune  had 
begun  to  smile  again  upon  the  British  arms.  Remote  from 
each  other  and  from  the  older  settlements,  the  frontier  popula- 
tion of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia  was  compelled  to  fall  back 
and  relinquish  the  country  to  the  French  and  their  savage  allies. 

*  The  grant  made  to  the  Ohio  Company  in  1748  was  only  one  out  of  leveral  grants 
made  about  that  time.  Several  grants  farther  south  were  of  older  date.  Among  these 
were  those  made  to  lands  lying  upon  the  sources  of  the  Kentucky  or  Louisa  River,  of 
the  Cumberland,  Clinch,  and  Holston  Rivers,  and  within  the  present  limits  of  Eastern 
Kentucky  and  East  Tennessee.  It  was  for  the  purpose  of  exploring  the  laijds  com- 
prised in  these  grants  that  several  parties  of  woodsmen  and  hunters  from  North  Caro- 
lina, under  Colonels  Wood,  Patton,  and  Buchanan,  and  those  under  Captoin  Charles 
Campbell  and  Dr.  Walker,  were  made  between  the  years  1745  and  1750.  All  tliese 
persons  were  largely  interested  in  g^rauts ;  and  as  early  as  1755,  they  had  led  out  about 
fifty  families  for  settlements  west  of  the  mountains ;  but  after  the  commencement  of 
the  French  War,  in  1755,  they  were  compelled  to  retire  until  after  Pontiac's  War. 
la  1763  tliey  returned  to  the  West.— See  Guthrie's  Geography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  47S. 


A.D.  1757.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


311 


The  most  western  English  settlements  at  that  time  had 
not  reached  the  sources  of  the  Susquehanna,  the  Potomac,  the 
Shenandoah,  James,  and  Roanoke  Rivers ;  yet  they  were  ex- 
posed during  the  whole  of  the  French  war  to  the  continual  in- 
cursions of  the  "  Six  Nations"  and  their  confederates  northwest 
of  the  Ohio  River.  Among  the  latter,  the  Shawanese  were 
the  most  powerful  and  the  most  inveterate  enemies  of  the  Vir- 
ginians. From  the  banks  of  the  Scioto  and  Miami  Rivers,  they 
would  penetrate  the  vast  mountain  wilderness  of  western  Vir- 
ginia, advancing  up  the  eastern  tributaries  of  the  Ohio  to  the 
dividing  summits,  not  less  than  five  hundred  miles  from  their 
towns ;  from  these  elevations  they  would  descend  upon  the  set- 
tlements situated  on  the  tributaries  of  the  Atlantic  rivers,  spread- 
ing consternation,  rapine,  and  death  through  the  unprotected 
immigrants.  The  settlements  on  the  sources  of  the  Yadkin, 
the  French  Broad  and  New  River,  also,  had  been  driven  back 
by  the  Cherokees,  who  joined  the  northern  Indians  as  allies  of 
France. 

At  this  time,  the  whole  valley  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and 
the  Alleghany  ranges  was  a  desolate  frontier  region,  where 
the  inhabitants  were  cooped  up  in  forts  for  protection,  or,  to 
avoid  starvation,  had  fled  toward  the  eastern  settlements.  The 
present  town  of  Winchester  occupies  the  site  of  a  stockade  fort, 
erected  in  the  year  1756,  to  "protect  the  inhabitants  from  the 
barbarities  daily  committed  by  the  French  Indians."*  Staun- 
ton and  Fincastle  were  then  frontier  posts,  harassed  by  con- 
stant inroads  of  the  savage  war-parties.  Nor  was  it  until  the 
next  year  that  Winchester  was  made  a  military  post,  when 
"  Fort  Loudon"  was  erected  as  a  regular  stockade  post.f 

In  making  incursions  upon  the  western  settlements  of  Vir- 
ginia, along  her  wide  frontier,  the  Indians  generally  pursued 
two  routes,  one  up  the  Valley  of  the  Great  Ksnhawa,  and  the 
other  up  the  Valley  of  the  Big  Sandy.  Those  war-parties  who 
pursued  the  former  route  passed  up  the  Kenhawa  to  the  mouth 
of  Greenbrier  River ;  thence,  following  that  river  to  its  sources, 
they  passed  the  dividing  summits  and  descended  upon  the  sour- 
ces of  the  Potomac  and  Shenandoah,  harassing  the  valley  settle- 
ments from  Winchester  on  the  north  to  Staunton  on  the  south. 
Others  of  the  same  party,  following  the  main  valley  of  the  Ken- 


*  See  Butler's  Hiatoiy  of  Kentuckjr,  Introdnction,  p.  39. 
t  MaraliaU'fl  Waihington,  vol.  ii.,  first  edition,  p.  33-2C. 


312 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


.  [book  III. 


hawa,  where  it  assumes  the  name  of  New  River,  to  its  sources, 
descended  upon  the  settlements  dispersed  upon  the  numerous 
tributaries  of  James  River  and  the  Roanoke. 

Those  who  took  the  Big  Sandy  Creek  route  ascended  that 
stream  to  the  mountains,  and  easily  passed  from  the  dividing 
highlands  down  upon  the  settlements  sparsely  scattered  upon 
the  head  waters  of  the  Staunton  and  Dan  Rivers,  and  upon  the 
sources  of  the  Roanoke. 

By  the  latter  route,  in  the  fall  of  1757,  a  party  of  Shawanese 
from  the  Scioto  towns  had  penetrated  to  the  sources  of  the  Ro- 
anoke, and  had  exterminated  a  whole  settlement.  To  avenge 
this  destructive  inroad,  and  to  prevent  a  repetition  of  it,  the 
Governor  of  Virginia,  Robert  Dinwiddie,  under  Colonel  Andrew 
Lewis,of  Botetourt  county,  organized  an  expedition  against  the 
Scioto  towns  for  the  purpose  of  chastising  the  Shawanese,  and 
of  establishing,  on  his  return,  a  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great 
Sandy,  as  a  barrier  against  future  inroads. 

Colonel  Lewis  without  delay  organized  his  expedition,  and 
proceeded  from  Salem,  the  point  of  rendezvous,  across  New 
River  to  the  Great  Sandy  late  in  the  fall,  with  supplies  inade- 
quate for  so  distant  a  march  through  an  uninhabited  country. 
Before  the  troops  reached  the  vicinity  of  the  Ohio  River,  their 
salt  provisions  were  exhausted,  and  they  were  driven  to  the 
necessity  of  supplying  their  wants  by  the  labor  of  the  chase, 
and  by  such  game  as  their  hunters  could  supply.  Fortunately, 
deer,  bear,  and  buffaloes  were  found  sufficient  for  their  imme- 
diate wants.  When  they  had  reached  within  ten  miles  of  the 
Ohio  River,  they  were  overtaken  by  an  express  from  Lieuten- 
ant-governor Fauquier,  commanding  Colonel  Lewis  to  abandon 
the  further  prosecution  of  the  campaign,  to  return  to  the  settle- 
ments, and  there  disband  his  troops. 

With  great  reluctance,  this  band  of  brave  backwoodsmen 
consented  to  return,  but  not  until  they  had  reached  the  Ohio, 
in  hopes  of  meeting  the  enemy.  Many  were  in  favor  of  pro- 
ceeding, notwithstanding  the  orders  of  the  lieutenant-governor. 
These  orders,  however,  had  been  dictated  by  a  proper  regard 
for  the  safety  of  this  little  army,  and  the  propriety  of  them  was 
fully  proven  by  the  sequel.  Notwithstanding  the  early  retro- 
grade movement  toward  the  settlements,  they  were,  by  the  se- 
verity of  winter,  on  their  return  march,  reduced  to  the  verge 
of  starvation  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness.    The  supplies  for 


A.D.  1757.] 


VALLEY    OF   TIB    MISSISSIPPI. 


313 


rge 
for 


the  expedition  had  been  completely  exhausted,  and  life  was 
barely  sustained  by  the  small  quantities  of  wild  game  and  beech 
nuts  found  in  the  woods.  But  these  were  taken  from  them  by 
the  deep  snow  which  soon  covered  the  mountains :  the  flesh  of 
the  pack-horses  was  then  their  only  dependence  for  sustenance; 
and  when,  at  length,  this  supply  failed,  every  piece  of  skin,  hide, 
or  leather  was  sought  and  devoured  with  great  voracity.  Be- 
fore they  reached  the  settlements,  they  had  become  so  emacia- 
ted by  fatigue  and  starvation  that  they  could  hardly  command 
strength  to  pursue  their  march.  What  would  have  been  their 
fate  had  they  advanced  two  hundred  miles  further  into  the 
wilderness,  requiring  three  or  four  weeks  more  of  toil  and  pri- 
vation, if  perchance  they  should  have  escaped  the  fury  of  the 
savages  ?  However,  they  all  finally,  under  their  able  and  en- 
ergetic conductor.  Colonel  Lewis,  arrived  in  safety  at  their 
homes.  This  fruitless  and  hazardous  expedition  for  many 
years  afterward  was  designated  as  the  "  Sandy  Creek  voyage."* 
Such  was  the  second  expedition  to  the  West,  in  which  Col- 
onel Lewis  had  served  an  arduous  and  hazardous  campaign ; 
the  first  being  the  disastrous  expedition  under  General  Brad- 
dock  two  years  before. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Cherokees  of  the  South  had  been  con- 
ciliated and  won  over  from  the  French  interest.  Before  the 
close  of  the  summer  of  1757  they  had  entered  into  treaty  stip- 
ulations for  peace  and  friendship,  and  had  consented  for  the 
establishment  of  a  fort  in  the  heart  of  their  country.  The  same 
autumn  "  Fort  Loudon,"  named  in  honor  of  the  Earl  of  Loudon, 
who  was  then  commander-in-chief  of  his  majesty's  forces  in 
America,  was  built  and  left  in  charge  of  a  suitable  garrison. 
Its  situation  was  upon  the  north  bank  of  the  Little  Tennessee, 
or  Watauga  River,  about  one  mile  above  the  mouth  of  Tellico 
River,  and  within  the  present  limits  of  Monroe  county,  in  East 
Tennessee.  The  garrison,  in  the  spring  of  1758,  was  augment- 
ed to  two  hundred  men,  and  was  intended  for  the  protection 
of  the  exposed  frontier,  as  well  as  to  prevent  and  neutralize 
French  intrigue  in  this  quarter.  The  same  year  adventurers 
and  camp-followers  advanced  into  this  remote  region,  and  es- 
tablished a  small  settlement  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
fort,  which  in  a  few  months,  by  the  arrival  of  traders  and  hunt- 
ers, grew  into  a  thriving  village.     This  fort  and  settlement 

*  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  Introdaction,  p.  40. 


814 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


were  about  one  hundred  and  ten  miles  west  of  the  frontier  post  of 
Fort  "  Prince  George,"  on  the  Keowee  River,  a  branch  of  the 
Savannah.* 

[A.D.  1758.]  The  same  autumn,  Colonel  Burd,  with  a  de- 
tachment of  troops,  advanced  into  the  Cherokee  country  about 
one  hundred  miles  north  of  Fort  Loudon,  and  erected  the  first 
English  fort  upon  the  Holston  River.  This  fort  was  located 
upon  a  beautiful  eminence,  nearly  opposite  the  upper  end  of 
Long  Island,  within  the  present  limits  of  Sullivan  county,  in 
East  Tennessee.  A  garrison  was  maintained  in  this  post  the 
whole  of  next  year,  during  which  time  a  thriving  village  settle- 
ment sprung  up  around  the  fort,  comprising  a  number  of  me- 
chanics and  artisans,  for  the  convenience  of  the  Indians.f 

During  the  summer  of  1758,  Dr.  T.Walker,  of  Virginia,  a  man 
of  intelligence  and  enterprise,  made  a  second  tour  of  explora- 
tionj  into  Powell's  Valley,  and  across  the  head  waters  of 
Clinch  River,  and,  passing  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  travers- 
ed the  eastern  portion  of  the  present  State  of  Kentucky,  cross- 
ing in  his  route  the  head  streams  of  the  Kentucky  River,  which 
he  called  Louisa  River ;  yet  he  did  not  see  the  fairest  portion 
of  Kentucky,  on  the  lower  valley  of  that  fine  river.  This  ex- 
ploration resulted  in  no  attempt  to  form  settlements,  and  fur- 
ther explorations  were  precluded  by  the  state  of  Indian  hostil- 
ities in  the  West. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  southern  frontier  until  the  close 
of  the  year  1759.  The  extreme  western  frontier  settlements 
of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  were  nearly  one  hundred  miles 
east  of  the  remote  posts  of  Loudon  and  Long  Island  ;  yet  the 
English  vainly  supposed  they  had  virtual  control  over  the  coun- 
try watered  by  the  great  southern  branches  of  the  Ohio. 

The  same  year,  1758,  the  Shawanese  warriors  resumed  their 

*  Sec  Drake's  Book  of  the  Indians,  book  iv.,  p.  28. 

t  See  Flint's  Geography  and  Hist,  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  vol.  ii.,  p.  19.  First 
ed.,  1828. 

X  As  early  as  1748,  Dr.  Walker,  in  company  with  Colonels  Wood,  Patton,  and  Bu- 
chanan, and  Captain  Charles  Campbell,  and  a  number  of  hnnters  and  woodsmen,  mado 
an  exploring  tour  upon  the  Western  waters.  Passing  Powell's  Valley,  he  gave  the 
name  of  "  Cumberland"  to  the  lofty  range  of  mountains  on  the  west.  Tracing  this  range 
in  a  southwestern  direction,  he  came  to  a  remarkable  depression  in  the  chain ;  through 
this  he  passed,  calling  it  "  Cumberland  Qap."  On  the  western  side  of  the  range  he 
found  a  beautiful  mountain  stream,  which  he  named  "  Cumberland  River :"  all  in  hon- 
or of  the  Duku  of  Cumberland,  then  prime  minister  of  England.— See  Winterbotham's 
America,  vol.  iii.,  p.  25,  26.  Also,  Marshall's  History  of  Kentucky,  vol.  i.,p.  6.  Hall's 
Sketches  of  the  West,  vol.  i.,  p.  239,  240. 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


315 


First 


A.D.  1758.] 

incursions  against  the  frontier  population  east  of  the  mountains. 
These  war-parties,  accompanied  by  a  few  Canadian  French, 
penetrated  the  settlements  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  death 
and  desolation  marked  their  path.  Dividing  into  smaller  par- 
ties as  they  approached  the  settlements,  they  dispersed,  and  qui- 
etly and  cautiously  penetrated  the  remotest  habitations,  unob- 
served and  unsuspected,  until  the  blow  was  struck,  when  they 
as  slyly  departed.  In  this  manner  no  less  than  sixty  persons 
were  killed  during  the  summer  of  1758,  in  the  county  of  Augus- 
ta alone. 

Meantime  the  British  forces  were  concentrating  in  Pennsyl- 
vania for  the  reduction  of  the  French  posts  on  the  Ohio.  The 
British  arms  had  been  attended  by  one  disaster  after  another, 
almost  from  the  beginning  of  the  war,  and  upon  the  Ohio  an- 
other disaster  awaited  them ;  although,  on  the  Atlantic  sea-board, 
fortune  had  begun  to  smile  propitiously. 

Great  preparations  had  been  made  by  the  mother  country,  as 
well  as  by  the  provinces,  to  fit  out  a  strong  expedition  to  the 
French  posts  on  the  Ohio.  In  July,  General  Forbes,  at  the  head 
of  an  army  of  about  seven  thousand  men,  set  out  from  Carlisle 
for  Raystown,  on  the  west  side  of  the  mountains.f  About  the 
middle  of  September,  the  advanced  guard  of  twenty-five  hun- 
dred men,  commanded  by  Colonel  Bouquet,  was  encamped  at 
Loyal  Hanna,  fifty  miles  west  of  Raystown.  From  this  point 
Colonel  Bouquet  dispatched  Major  Grant  with  eight  hundred 
men,  consisting  of  one  regiment  of  Scottish  Highlanders,  aad 
three  hundred  provincials  under  Colonel  Andrew  Lewis,  of 
Botetourt  county,  Virginia,  for  the  purpose  of  reconnoitering 
the  country  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort'  Duquesne. 

On  the  13th  of  September  Major  Grant  had  crossed  the 
Monongahela,  and  advanced  down  the  river  within  two  miles 
of  the  French  fort,  where  he  encamped  for  the  night.  Deter- 
mined to  surprise  the  French  garrison,  next  morning  very  early 
he  advanced  toward  the  fortress,  leaving  the  provincials  in 
camp,  lest  they  might  share  in  the  glory  of  the  achievement. 
Upon  an  eminence  which  overlooks  the  confluence,  within  six 
hundred  yards  of  Fort  Duquesne,  with  an  incautious  bravado, 
he  first  announced  his  presence  to  the  enemy  by  the  sound  of. 
the  reveille  drums.     The  French,  pleased  with  his  critical  sit- 

*  Manhall'a  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  ii.,  p.  S4-£6,  and  40. 
t  See  Sparks's  Writings  of  AVashington,  vol.  ii.,  p.  289. 


316 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  III. 


uation,  made  no  display  of  troops ;  but  silently  inarching  from 
the  fort  to  the  water's  edge,  and  dividing  into  two  columns, 
they  marched  up  the  channel  of  both  rivers,  under  the  conceal- 
ment of  the  river  banks,  and  the  heavy  forest  and  dense  under- 
growth with  which  they  were  covered,  until  they  gained  the 
rear  of  Major  Grant's  position.  Then  suddenly  converging 
and  ascending  the  heights  in  the  rear  of  the  enemy,  the  united 
columns,  with  a  numerous  body  of  Indians  on  the  flanks,  sud- 
denly gave  the  war-shout,  and  rushed  to  the  attack.  A  scene 
of  carnage  ensued.  The  terrified  Caledonians  were  thrown 
into  irretrievable  confusion,  and  were  cut  down  without  mercy 
by  infuriate  savages  as  they  attempted  to  force  their  way 
through  the  French  line.  In  less  than  one  hour  no  less  than 
two  hundred  and  seventy  Caledonians  fell  victims  to  the  united 
fury  of  the  rifle,  the  tomahawk,  and  scalping-knife.  Many  of 
those  who  escaped  were  wounded,  and  Major  Grant  and 
many  others  were  taken  captive.* 

The  regiment  was  rescued  from  utter  destruction  by  the 
prompt  advance  of  Colonel  Lewis  and  his  provincials,  who,  at 
the  first  report  of  the  fire-arms,  apprehensive  of  a  severe  en- 
gagement, without  orders  hastened  to  their  relief,  and  arrested 
the  victorious  pursuit  of  the  Indians.  Such  was  the  cause  and 
issue  of  "  Grant's  Defeat"  in  1758. 

After  this  sanguinary  affair,  the  remnant  of  the  Highland 
regiment,  perfectly  satisfied  with  their  first  lesson  in  Indian 
warfare,  were  glad  to  place  themselves  under  the  protection 
of  the  provincials,  and  make  a  precipitate  retreat  to  the  main 
army  at  Loyal  Hanna,  leaving  the  French  once  more  victori- 
ous on  the  Ohio. 

The  scene  of  this  disastrous  battle  was  long  known  as 
"Grant's  Hill,"  m  the  rear  of  the  city  of  Pittsburgh  ..  !  the 
hill  itself,  which  was  removed  in  1844  to  enlarge  the  city,  is 
still  commemorated  by  "  Grant-street." 

Nor  was  it  long  before  the  French,  with  their  allies,  advanced 
to  meet  the  royal  forces.  Emboldened  by  the  success  at 
Grant's  Hill,  they  hung  upoa  the  rear  and  flanks  of  the  retreat- 
ing detachment  until  it  reached  the  camp  at  Loyal  Hanna.  On 
the  11th  of  October,  they  made  a  furious  attack  upon  Colonel 

*  See  American  Pioneer,  vol.  i.,  p.  303.    This  valuable  periodical  was  pablished 
monthly,  first  at  Chillicothe,  and  then  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio  ;  but  was  discontinued  after 
The  design  was  to  collect  and  record  historical  incidents  and  personal  rem- 


1843 


iniscences  of  the  early  pioneers  of  the  Ohio  region. 


A.D.  1758.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MIHSISSIPPI. 


317 


Bouquet's  encampment,  where  he  was  in  command  of  twelve 
hundred  men.  After  a  severe  engagement  of  four  hours'  dura- 
tion, the  enemy  was  repulsed,  but  not  until  the  EngHsh  had 
lost  sixty-seven  men  killed  and  wounded. 

On  the  24th  of  October,  General  Forbes  began  to  move  the 
main  army  westward  to  Loyal  Hanna.*  On  the  13th  of  No- 
vember, he  detached  Colonel  Armstrong  with  one  thousand 
men,  to  advance  by  regular  marches  to  Fort  Duquesne ;  and 
on  the  17th,  with  the  main  army,  he  proceeded  toward  the 
French  fortress,  leaving  strong  detachments  to  garrison  Rays- 
town  and  Loyal  Hanna.  On  the  24th  of  November,  the  ad- 
vanced detachment  marched  into  Fort  Duquesne  without  re- 
sistance ;  for  it  had  been  dismantled  and  burned  by  the  French, 
who  abandoned  it  only  when  defense  was  impracticable  against 
the  overwhelming  force  which  was  advancing  against  it,  and 
within  one  day's  march.f 

The  French  commandant,  who  had  been  well  informed  of 
every  movement  of  the  British  army  since  its  departure  from 
Carlisle,  conscious  of  his  inability  successfully  to  defend  the 
post  against  such  overwhelming  numbers,  had  dismantled  the 
fort  and  set  the  buildings  on  fire  previous  to  its  evacuation. 
Having  thus  rendered  it  useless  to  the  enemy,  he  embarked  his 
command  of  about  five  hundred  men,  together  with  the  ord- 
nance and  military  stores,  in  boats  and  barges  upon  the  Ohio, 
and  descended  that  river  to  its  mouth,  whence  he  soon  after- 
ward descended  to  New  Orleans.  J 

As  the  French  commander  descended  the  Ohio,  he  made  a 
halt  about  forty  miles  from  the  mouth,  and,  on  a  beautiful  em- 
inence on  the  north  bank  of  the  river,  commenced  a  fort,  and 
left  a  detachment  of  one  hundred  men  as  a  garrison.  The  post 
was  called  "  Fort  Massac,"  in  honor  of  the  commander,  M. 
Massac,  who  superintended  its  construction.  This  was  the  last 
fort  erected  by  the  French  on  the  Ohio,  and  it  was  occupied 
by  a  garrison  of  French  troops  until  the  evacuation  of  the 
country  under  the  stipulations  of  the  treaty  of  Paris.    Such 


*  The  whole  army  under  General  Forbes,  designed  to  operate  upon  the  French  posts 
near  the  Ohio,  was  composed  of  the  following  royal  troops  and  provincials,  viz. : 

1.  Royal  Americans,         350  men.    I    3.  Virginians,  2600  men. 

2.  Scotch  Highlanders,    1200      "       |    4.  Pcnnsylvanians,  2700     " 
besides  wagoners,  sutlers,  and  camp  followers  to  the  number  of  1000  souls.— See  Gor- 
don's History  of  Pennsylvania,  p.  366-369. 

t  Gordon's  Pennsylvania,  p.  366,  367.  t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  333. 


318 


IIIMTORY    or    TUB 


[book    III. 


wns  tlie  origin  of  Fort  Mnnsac,  divested  of  the  romnnco  which 
fa))lo  has  thrown  uroiutd  its  name. 

Fort  Duquesne  was  repaired  by  the  onlers  of  General 
Forlies  ;  after  which  the  name  was  changed  to  "  Fort  Pitt,"  in 
honor  of  the  ^reat  William  Pitt,  the  prime  minister  of  (ireat 
Hrituin,  by  whoso  wise  and  energetic  administration  the  for- 
tunes of  the  war  in  America  had  been  so  signally  changed. 

A  garrison  of  four  hundred  and  fifty  |)rovincial  troops,  un- 
der the  command  of  Cieneral  Mercer,  was  left  in  the  post  as 
the  key  to  the  whole  Ohio  region.  Thus  conunenced  '  •■  first 
establishment  of  British  power  upon  the  waters  of  the  Ohio 
River,  conse(iuent  upon  the  expulsion  of  the  French. 

After  the  fall  of  Fort  Duquesne,  the  minor  posts  situated  on 
the  northwest  side  of  the  Ohio  were  successively  abandoned  by 
the  French  commandants,  leaving  them  an  easy  conquest  to 
the  superior  forces  of  the  English  commanders.  The  French 
troops,  retiring  before  the  advance  of  the  English  forces,  de- 
scended the  Ohio  River  from  all  the  posts  south  of  the  lakes, 
and  concentrated  on  the  Lower  Ohio.  The  Indian  allies  were 
compelled  to  suspend  hostilities,  and  reluctantly  to  enter  into 
terms  of  peace  with  their  English  enemies.  Many  of  the  un- 
protected settlements  upon  the  tributaries  of  the  Alleghany,  the 
Sandusky,  and  the  Scioto  abandoned  their  homes,  and  retire<I 
upon  the  settlements  of  the  Wabash  and  Illinois  countries,  and 
some  descended  the  Mississippi  to  Lower  Louisiana. 

Actual  hostilities  upon  the  Upper  Ohio  were  virtually  ter- 
minated by  the  evacuation  of  Fort  Duquesne ;  and  the  whole 
region  on  both  sides  of  the  river  being  in  the  actual  occupancy 
of  the  English  troops,  emigrants  began  again  to  explore  the  re- 
mote regions  west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  and  upon  the 
upper  tributaries  of  the  Ohio. 

[A.D.  1759.]  Early  in  the  spring  of  1759,  several  new  Eng- 
lish  posts  were  established  upon  the  east  side  of  the  Ohio,  as  a 
protection  to  the  advancing  population,  and  for  observing  the 
movements  of  the  hostile  tribes  upon  the  w  aters  of  the  Monon- 
gahela.  One  of  the  most  important  of  these  was  that  which 
subsequently  was  known  as  "  Redstone  Old  Fort."  The  site 
of  this  fort  was  the  earthworks  of  an  aboriginal  fortification, 
situated  upon  the  margin  of  an  eminence  which  overlooks  the 
Monongahela  from  the  north  side  of  Dunlop's  Creek.  Having 
been  selected  as  an  eligible  site  for  a  military  post,  Colonel 


A.D.  1760.] 


VAI.I.EY    ()»'    TIIK    MIriHIHrilPrl. 


310 


Itiird,  with  tw*>  hundred  men,  was  ordorud  to  open  a  roud  from 
Uruddock'H  "  uld  truce,"  ua  the  host  route  to  the  MoiioiigahcUi 
at  this  point.  The  sumo  Huninier  witnesHed  the  completion  of 
the  iort,  which,  after  its  founder,  was  named  "  Fort  Hurd." 
Captain  I'aull,  with  a  small  garrison,  continued  to  hold  com- 
mand until  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  of  peace,  in  17U3. 
At  a  later  period,  it  was  dis(;ontinued  as  a  military  post,  and 
received  the  name  of  "  Redstone  Old  Fort,"  from  the  red  sand- 
stone found  in  a  blutl*  below.*  Around  this  |)oint  was  subse- 
quently concentrated  one  of  the  first  English  settlements  on  the 
Monongahela. 

Although  driven  from  the  ujiper  tributaries  of  the  Ohio,  the 
French  did  not  abandon  the  country  further  south.  They 
made  another  ellbrt  to  eject  the  En;4'ish  from  the  ("herokeo 
country.  Emissaries  were  diKpatchu!  to  ij  iso  the  Cherokees 
from  their  new  alliance,  iu  0  to  inuuco  tJwM  i  again  to  resume 
the  tomahawk  as  an  all}  I'f  l'  .:u;  e.  if  the  Cherokees,  as  a 
nation  undivided,  could  be  urirshiilltMl  against  the  English, 
France  might  yet  retain  Loulstiuna  'Wii;  the  g'P.sp  <  f  Enj^land; 
and  it  was  known  that  a  poitior  ol  the  nati'-a  „\us  ready  to 
strike  the  enemies  of  rr.incc.t 

The  Cherokees,  obed' (mi  to  the  cf>!l  of  the  Frem '/!  ^nvuVj, 
again  put  on  their  armor.  In  a  io\w  weeks  the.  iroiiuani  of 
North  and  South  Carolina  were  veclrin^  un'lei  tho  inoui-ai*;!!;* 
of  the  war-parties  from  the  Cheroke"  'lalion ;  am!  the  pi<>vin- 
ces  were  actively  employed  in  defe)!«ling  tie  unprotected  sel- 
tiements.  It  was  resolvod  to  iiivado  tho  Chen)l;ee  co',ujt,ry 
with  a  powerful  army,  and  to  chastise  the  iiatioa  hy  ijkvagip^ 
their  country  and  destroying  dieiv  t  .»WiiK.  This  being  kauwo 
in  the  Cherokee  nation,  of  which  a  large,  pi>rtif)n  was  nol  hos- 
tile, but  desirous  of  averting  the  contemplalcd  invasiuu,  a  plan 
was  devised  to  prevent  such  c.  calamity.     F')r  ibis  puipose, 

*  American  Pioneer,  vol.  ii.,  p.  Sd-''?,  where  a  fi.li  history  of  tho  furt  and  the  firit 
Ileditune  scttlemout  may  bo  si  ti^. 

t  Moit  of  the  ChorokucB  hat!  \tnvi.  patulk  a, id  oh^jCus.mI  the  Engliah  cauoe ;  aomc  of 
them  had  joined  the  English  in  tliuir  cniripai(.njf>  tc  rliu  Ohio;  but,  having  been  treated 
improperly,  aa  they  supiHW,^'',  nA  wry  '.njiii-rli  ctly  anpplied,  they  retired  to  their  towns 
During  the  French  war,  i)>)  Lcfjii'intiiro  »(  Noith  Carolina  had  aathorized  a  premium 
for  the  scalps  of  hoati'  -  T'ldiavii.  Aa  it  woa  impossible  to  distinguish  the  scalp  of  a 
friendly  Indiat^  fri  .a  uuo  thut  v^as  hostile,  and  as  tlie  former  were  much  mure  caaily 
procured,  t'l.)  lawlcsa  Wcatom  people,  the  Qennana  oapecially,  frequently  shot  friend- 
ly Clu^n>H  jca  for  their  scalps.  lu  one  season  nearly  forty  Cherokees  had  been  thaa 
cruelly  murdered.  They  became  greatly  disaflTccted  toward  the  BngUsh,  as  the  French 
well  knew.— i^ee  Drake's  Book  of  Indians,  book  iv.,  p.  SS.    Orahame,  vol.  iv.,  p.  67. 


320 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  iir. 


they  sent  thirty  chiefs  upon  an  embassy  of  peace.  Their  route 
lay  by  way  of  Fort  Prince  George,  on  the  Savannah,  where 
Governor  Lyttleton  was  encamped  with  eleven  hundred  men. 
At  this  post  the  Indian  envoys  were  forcibly  detained,  and 
compelled  to  sign  a  treaty  ;  and  for  the  fulfillment  of  its  stipula- 
tions, to  which  they  unwillingly  assented,  twenty-two  of  their 
number  were  held  as  hostages  for  the  surrender  of  those  Indians 
who  had  committed  recent  murders  upon  the  frontiers.  This 
unjust  and  impolitic  act  roused  the  indignation  and  vengeance 
of  the  whole  Cherokee  nation,  and  led  to  general  hostilities.* 

[A.D.  1760.]  The  first  movement  on  the  part  of  the  In- 
dians, after  the  hostages  had  been  in  close  imprisonment  for 
nearly  two  months,  was  an  attempt,  by  stratagem,  to  liberate 
their  chiefs  from  confinement  in  the  fort.  In  the  attempt,  the 
commandant  of  the  fort  and  one  or  two  soldiers  were  wounded. 
In  retaliation,  the  prisoners  were  soon  afterward  taken  out  and 
deliberately  shot. 

The  whole  Cherokee  nation  immediately  flew  to  arms,  and 
ior  a  time  they  waged  a  most  unrelenting  and  bloody  war 
against  the  frontier  settlements  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina. 

The  first  general  movement  of  the  hostile  Indians  in  this 
quarter  was  the  capture  of  "  Fort  Loudon,"  with  its  garrison 
of  two  hundred  men.  The  latter,  after  a  protracted  siege,  had 
been  reduced  to  the  horrors  of  famine,  after  having  consumed 
their  horses  and  dogs  for  food.  It  was  not  until  then  that  the 
commandant  agreed  to  capitulate,  upon  condition  that  the  gar- 
rison should  be  permitted  to  march  with  their  arms,  unmolest- 
ed, to  the  nearest  white  settlements.  The  Indians  stipulated 
that  this  privilege  should  be  granted  upon  the  surrender  of 
the  fort ;  but  they  violated  their  obligations. 

Agreeably  to  treaty  stipulations,  the  fort  was  surrendered  on 
the  7th  day  of  August,  and  the  troops  had  proceeded  one  day's 
march  up  the  Tellico,  where  they  encamped  for  the  night, 
fifteen  miles  from  Fort  Loudon,  and  on  the  route  to  Fort 
George.  Here,  on  the  banks  of  the  Tellico  River,  at  diiybreak 
next  morning,  they  were  surrounded  and  attacked  by  nearly 
five  hundred  Indian  warriors,  with  the  most  hideous  yells,  as 
they  rushed,  tomahawk  in  hand,  upon  the  feeble  and  emaciated 
troops.  Resistance  was  vain :  the  captain  and  thirty  of  his 
men  fell  at  the  first  fire,  and  Ihe  greatest  portion  of  the  re- 

*  Drake'!  Book  of  the  Indiana,  book  iv.,  p.  38,  39. 


A.D. 


17G1.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


321 


mainder  were  massacred  upon  the  spot.  Captain  Stewart, 
with  a  few  others,  were  spared,  and  carried  into  a  captivity 
worse  than  death.* 

HostiUties,  with  all  the  horrors  of  Indian  warfare,  were 
urged  with  ruthless  barbarity  by  the  vindictive  Cherokees 
against  the  frontier  population  of  Virginia,  as  well  as  of  North 
and  South  Carolina,  for  nearly  two  years.  The  warlike  Cher- 
okees at  this  time  held  possession  of  all  the  regions  upon  the 
sources  of  the  Tennessee  River  and  its  tributaries,  as  far  south 
and  west  as  the  Muscle  Shoals ;  and  France,  under  them  as 
her  allies,  had  claimed  all  the  southwestern  portion  of  Virginia 
and  North  Carolina  as  a  part   of   Louisiana. 

During  the  period  of  hostilities  in  this  portion  of  the  western 
frontier,  the  white  population,  which  had  been  extending  upon 
the  sources  of  the  Holston  and  Clinch,  and  upon  the  sources  of 
the  French  Broad,  were  driven  back  upon  the  older  settlements 
east  of  the  mountains. 

During  the  summer  of  1761,  a  strong  force,  under  Colonel 
Grant,  invaded  the  Cherokee  country,  and  the  savages,  flying 
before  him,  left  the  country  an  easy  conquest.  Marching 
through  the  nation,  he  laid  waste  their  fields,  burned  their 
towns,  and,  destroying  their  resources,  compelled  them  to  sue 
for  peace.  Near  the  close  o(  the  year  peace  was  restored  upon 
the  southwestern  frontier  of  the  provinces,  and  emigrants  were 
aga.n  ready  to  advance  into  their  deserted  settlements. 

[A.D.  1761.]  During  the  two  years  which  had  elapsed  since 
the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  the  Ohio  region,  and  the  pos- 
session of  the  key  to  the  Western  country  by  the  English  troops 
at  Fort  Pitt,  the  most  rapid  and  brilliant  successes  had  attend- 
ed the  British  arms  in  Canada,  and  in  the  region  south  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  and  upon  the  lakes.  The  whole  region  east  and 
west  of  Lake  Champlain,  and  westward  to  Lake  Erie,  was  al- 
ready subjected  to  the  dominion  of  Great  Britain.  The  strong 
•  fortresses  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point  had  been  captured 
in  August,  1759,  and  in  September  following  Fort  Niagara,  at 
the  western  extremity  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  Quebec,  the  Gib- 
raltar of  North  America,  had  yielded  to  her  victorious  arms. 
With  them  fell  the  French  power  south  of  the  lakes.  Next 
year  Montreal  fell,  and  with  it  the  whole  of  Canada.f 


•  Oordon's  History  of  Pennsylvania,  p.  388. 
p.  j1. 


Vol.  I— X 


Also,  Drake's  Book  of  Indiniis,  lxx)k  !••• 
t  Martina  Luuisiaua,  vol.  i.,  p.  23(>. 


322 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  in. 


[A.D.  1702.]  The  people  of  Northern  Virginia  began  to  ad- 
vance from  the  sources  of  the  Potomac  over  the  mountains,  upon 
the  head  waters  of  the  Monongahela ;  from  the  sources  of 
James  River  they  were  crossing  the  dividing  ridges,  and  de- 
scending upon  the  Greenbrier,  New  River,  and  other  tributa- 
ries of  the  Kenhawa.  Others,  from  the  Roanoke  and  from 
North  Carolina,  were  advancing  westward  upon  the  sources  of 
the  Staunton,  Dan,  Yadkin,  Catawba,  and  Broad  Rivers,  along 
the  eastern  base  of  the  Blue  Monntains,  with  wishful  eyes  upon 
the  beautiful  country  of  the  Cherokees. 

Pennsylvania  was  sending  her  emigrants  westward  upon  the 
tributaries  of  the  Susquehanna,  while  other  hardy  pioneers 
from  Virginia,  Maryland,  and  Pennsylvania  were  advancing 
by  the  military  roads  to  form  settlements  on  the  Monongahela, 
near  Fort  Pitt,  and  upon  its  eastern  tributaries.  But  the  re- 
gion of  Western  Virginia,  drained  by  the  tributaries  of  the 
Holston  and  Clinch,  were  still  savage  wilds,  in  the  occupancy 
of  the  native  tribes,  excluding  even  the  most  resolute  pioneer. 
The  embryo  settlements,  formerly  made  on  the  Tellico  and  on 
the  Holston,  near  Long  Island,  had  been  destroyed  or  aban- 
doned. 

[A.D.  1763.]  At  length,  in  the  following  year,  France  was 
obliged  to  acknowledge  the  loss  of  her  empire  in  America. 
The  treaty  of  Paris,  on  the  IGth  of  February,  1763,  ceded  to 
Great  Britain  all  Canada,  and  all  the  French  claim  to  the  whole 
region  east  of  the  Mississippi  River,  as  far  south  as  the  south- 
ern limit  of  Georgia. 

But  the  treaty  of  Paris  made  no  stipulation  for  the  tribes  who 
had  been  in  alliance  with  France,  and  who  claimed  to  be  in 
dependent  nations,  and  the  real  occupants  of  the  territory  ced- 
ed by  France.  They  had  been  no  party  to  the  treaty  of  peace, 
and  they  refused  to  be  bound  by  any  transfer  which  the  French 
king  should  make  of  their  country  to  their  enemies,  the  English. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  dominion  of  Great  Britain, 
by  the  treaty  of  Paris,  was  recognized  over  all  the  territory 
east  of  the  Mississippi,  from  its  source  to  the  Bayou  Iberville,* 
including  all  the  French  settlements  in  the  Illinois  country,  and 
upon  the  tributaries  of  the  Ohio.  During  the  contest  which 
preceded  the  treaty  of  Paris,  most  of  the  Indian  tribes  oc- 
cupying the  vast  region  from  Lake  Champlain  on  the  east. 

*  6ee  book  ii.,  chap.  iii. 


I 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


323 


leace, 
French 
iglish. 
|ritain, 
[ritory 
[ville,* 
ly.  ai^d 
Iwhich 
|es  oc- 
east. 


to  the  Mississippi  on  the  west,  had  either  been  engaged  as  al- 
lies and  auxiUaries  to  the  French  arms,  or  had  observed  a  sus- 
picious neutrality.  Among  the  most  powerful  of  these  aux- 
iliaries was  the  confederacy  known  to  the  French  as  the  Iro- 
quois, and  to  the  English  as  the  "Six  Nations,"  then  inhab- 
iting the  northern  and  western  portions  of  New  York  and  part 
of  Pennsylvania.  Some  bands  of  the  Six  Nations  dwelt  on  the 
sources  of  the  •  )h'0  south  of  Lake  Erie,  and  others  us  far  west 
as  the  Cuyaho^'a  River,  on  Lake  Erie.  Other  tribes  further 
west,  upon  the  tributaries  both  of  the  Ohio  and  of  the  Upper 
Mississippi,  were  in  alliance  with,  or  under  the  control  of  the 
Six  Nations.*  These  also  entertained  the  same  hostile  feel- 
ing toward  the  English  settlements.  But  the  Cherokees  of  the 
South  had  buried  the  hatchet,  and  again  had  entered  into  a 
treaty  of  peace  and  friendship  with  the  English. 

During  the  war  between  the  French  and  English  provinces, 
the  French  had  duly  impressed  the  Indians  with  the  inordinate 
desire  of  the  English  to  possess  their  western  lands.  This 
grasping  propensity  of  England  to  occupy  these  fine  lands,  in 
the  eye  of  the  Indian,  was  the  chief  cause  of  the  war  in  which 
General  Braddock  had  fallen.  The  French,  of  course,  had  no 
such  objects  to  accomplish.  Under  this  belief,  the  Indians  had 
entered  heartily  into  the  war,  in  expectation  of  restricting  the 
English  settlements  to  the  east  side  of  the  mountains.  In  their 
alliance,  the  French  had  pledged  themselves  to  defend  and  pro- 
tect the  Indians  in  their  rights,  and  in  the  occupancy  of  their 
territory  and  hunting-grounds  eastward  to  the  western  ranges 
of  the  Alleghany  Mountains. 

The  Indians  were  well  apprised  that,  in  the  treaty  of  Paris, 
ceding  the  whole  country  to  England,  including  all  their  lands 
south  of  the  lakes  and  westward  to  the  Mississippi  River,  with- 
out their  assent,  the  King  of  France,  vanquished  and  driven 
from  all  his  strong-holds,  had  been  compelled  to  accede  to  such 

•  The  Six  Nations  nriginally  occupied  and  held  dominion  over  a  very  extensive  terri- 
tory. After  the  close  of  the  French  war,  but  especially  after  the  treaty  of  the  "  Ger- 
man Flats"  in  1764,  they  entered  into  alliance  with  the  Euglish.  "  The  limits  of  their 
lands  or  country  included  all  the  nations  and  tribes  vrhich  were  subject  to  them  by  con- 
quest or  otherwise :  they  extended  from  the  south  part  of  Lake  Champlain,  in  latitude 
44°  north,  to  the  borders  of  Carolina,  in  latitude  36°,  comprehending  all  Pennsylvania 
and  the  adjacent  countries.  The  Six  Nations  themselves  arc  seated  between  tlie  forty- 
second  and  forty-third  parallels  of  north  latitude,  north  and  east  of  Pennsylvania,  within 
the  lioiinda  of  New  York  government,  and  on  the  rivers  which  run  into  Lake  Ontario." — 
.Sec  I'roud's  History  of  Pennsylvania,  vol.  ii.,  p.  293,  994. 


324 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


terms  as  were  dictated  by  the  conquerors.  Hence  it  was  that 
France,  unable  to  obtain  for  her  Indian  allies  any  favorable 
stipulations,  had  been  compelled  to  leave  them  to  contend  alone 
with  the  colossal  power  of  their  enemies.  Although  exasperated 
at  the  ungenerous  desertion  of  the  French,  and  left  to  contend 
single-handed  with  the  English  provinces,  the  Indians  were  not 
dismayed,  but  were  rather  roused  to  desperation  in  their  de- 
termination to  resist  the  advance  of  the  white  settlements  west 
of  the  mountains.  They  had  no  reasonable  hope  that  the  in- 
ordinate pretensions  heretofore  set  up  by  the  British  provinces 
to  the  Ohio  country  would  be  withdrawn  or  in  any  wise  abated, 
since  their  right  had  been  acknowledged  by  France. 

England  claimed  for  her  colonies  only  the  right  of  dominion 
or  jurisdiction ;  but  the  Indians  could  perceive  no  distinction 
between  the  right  of  jurisdiction  and  the  right  of  possession. 
They  inferred,  correctly  judging  from  the  past,  that  the  English 
intended  to  dispossess  them  of  the  whole  country  so  soon  as 
they  could  find  it  convenient  to  occupy  it  with  their  colonial 
settlements.  This  belief  was  strongly  confirmed  by  the  fact 
that  British  troops  were  distributed  in  all  the  old  French  posts 
as  far  west  as  Detroit  and  Green  Bay.  They  also  beheld  the 
erection  of  other  strong  forts  in  the  very  heart  of  their  country. 
One  fort  had  been  built  at  Bedford,  more  than  two  hundred 
miles  west  of  Philadelphia ;  another  was  erected  at  Ligonier ; 
another,  called  Fort  Pitt,  on  the  site  of  the  old  French  Fort 
Duquesne.  The  forts  at  Niagara,  Presque  Isle,  Detroit,  St. 
Joseph's,  and  Mackinaw  were  repaired,  and  garrisoned  with 
British  troops. 

Other  forts  were  being  erected  upon  the  waters  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna River,  and  upon  lands  claimed  by  the  Indians. 
Thus  the  red  men  saw  themselves  circumvented  by  a  strong 
line  of  forts  on  the  north  and  east,  while  those  of  Bedford,  Lig- 
onier, and  Pitt  threatened  the  speedy  extension  of  the  white 
settlements  into  the  heart  of  their  country.* 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  native  proprietors  and  occu- 
pants of  the  country  from  time  immemorial  were  compelled  to 
choose  between  the  only  three  alternatives :  first,  the  prospect 
of  being  driven  to  the  inhospitable  regions  north  and  west  of 
the  lakes ;  secondly,  to  negotiate  with  the  English  for  permis- 
sion to  remain  upon  their  own  lands ;  or,  thirdly,  to  take  up 

*  Doddridge's  Notes  on  Virginia,  p.  815. 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY  OP  THE  MlSSISStPPI. 


325 


arms  in  defense  of  them.*  Their  native  courage  and  love  of 
independence,  sustained  by  the  justness  of  their  cause,  prompt- 
ed them  to  adopt  the  last  alternative.  All  former  experience 
taught  them  that  finally  they  should  be  overcome,  if  not  ex- 
terminated, by  their  intolerant  enemy  ;  yet  they  determined  to 
assert  their  rights,  although  they  might  be  crushed  in  the  at- 
tempt to  maintain  them  against  their  powerful  oppressors. 
They  preferred  death  to  ignoble  dependence  or  a  cowardly 
peace. 

To  remove,  so  far  as  appearances  might  avail,  any  appa- 
rent grounds  for  apprehension,  on  the  part  of  the  Indians,  that 
the  British  government  designed  to  extend  its  jurisdiction  over 
the  Indian  territory,  the  proclamation  of  King  George  III.  was 
issued  in  the  year  1763,  prohibiting  all  the  provincial  govern- 
ors from  granting  lands,  or  issuing  land-warrants  to  be  loca- 
ted upon  any  territory  lying  west  of  the  mountains,  or  west 
of  the  sources  of  those  streams  which  flow  into  the  Atlantic. 
The  same  proclamation  prohibited,  also,  all  settlements  by  the 
subjects  of  Great  Britain  in  the  provinces  west  of  the  sources 
of  the  Atlantic  streams.f 

This  proclamation,  however,  as  was  admitted  by  Colonel 
George  Washington  and  Chancellor  Livingston,  was  intended 
merely  to  quiet  the  jealous  apprehensions  of  the  Indians  against 
the  advance  of  the  white  settlements  on  the  western  side  of  the 
mountains.  It  was  not  in  any  wise  designed  really  to  check 
the  ultimate  occupation  of  the  country.  Virginia,  agreeably 
to  Colonel  Washington's  opinion,  "viewing  the  proclamation  in 
no  other  light  than  as  a  temporary  expedient  to  quiet  the  minds 


fong 

l.ig- 


3CCU- 

ed  to 
pect 
St  of 
rmis- 
e  up 


•  Doddridge's  Notes  on  Virginia,  p.  215,  316. 

t  The  following  extract  oontaius  the  pruhibitiou  alluded  to  in  this  proclamation  of  the 
king,  dated  October  7th,  1763,  viz. : 

"  And  whereas  great  frauds  and  abuses  have  been  committed  in  purchasing  lands 
of  tlie  Indians,  tu  the  great  prejudice  of  our  interests  and  to  the  great  dissatisfaction 
of  the  said  Indians ;  in  order,  therefore,  to  prevent  such  irregularities  fur  the  future, 
and  to  the  end  that  the  Indioiu  may  bo  convinced  of  our  justice  and  determined  reso- 
lution to  remove  all  reasonable  cause  of  discontent,  wc  do,  with  the  advice  of  our  privy 
council,  strictly  enjoin  and  reciiiire  that  no  private  person  do  presume  to  make  any  pur- 
chase from  tlie  said  Indians  of  any  lands  reserved  to  the  said  Indians  within  those  parts 
of  our  colonies  where  we  have  thought  proper  to  allow  settlements.  But  that,  if  at  any 
time  any  of  the  Indians  should  be  inclined  to  disi>osc  of  tlic  said  lands,  the  same  shall  be 
purchased  only  6)r  us  in  our  name,  at  some  public  meeting  or  assembly  of  tlie  suiil  In- 
dians, to  bo  held  for  tliat  purpose  by  the  governor  or  commander-in-chief  of  our  colony 
respectively,  within  the  limits  of  any  proprietors,  conformably  to  such  directions  and  in- 
stiiictiuns  as  we  or  they  shall  tliink  proper  to  give  for  that  purpose." — See  Brown's 
liistoi-y  of  Illinois,  p.  210. 


32G 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


of  the  Indians,"  soon  afterward  "  patented  considerable  tracts 
of  land  on  the  Ohio,  far  beyond  the  Appalachian  Mountains."* 

In  the  mean  time,  agents  and  surveyors  had  been  busily  en- 
gaged, whenever  Indian  forbearance  permitted,  in  searching 
out  the  finest  lands  east  and  southeast  of  the  Ohio,  and  making 
surveys  or  locations  of  them  in  such  tracts  as  might  be  de- 
sired to  complete  the  quantum  originally  granted  to  the  Ohio 
Company,  and  also  to  complete  the  complement  of  other  pri- 
vate grants  and  military  bounties  for  service  in  the  late  French 
war. 

The  master  spirit  of  Pontiac  was  busily  engaged,  during 
this  time,  in  preparing  his  plan  of  hostile  operations  against 
the  English  provinces,  the  execution  of  which  has  rendered 
the  year  1763,  as  well  as  the  name  of  Pontiac,  memorable  in 
the  annals  of  Indian  hostilities  in  the  West. 

Pontiac,  or  Pondiac,  was  an  Ottawa  chief,  partly  of  French 
descent  (having  declared  that  he  would  live  and  die  a  French- 
man), and  an  unwavering  enemy  to  the  British  power.  He 
was  a  savage  of  the  noblest  mold,  equal,  at  least,  to  King  Phil- 
ip of  former  times,  or  Tecumseh  of  later  date.  In  point  of  na- 
tive talent,  courage,  magnanimity,  and  integrity,  he  will  com- 
pare, without  prejudice,  with  the  most  renowned  of  civilized 
potentates  and  conquerors.  During  the  series  of  Indian  wars 
against  the  English  colonies  and  armies,  from  the  Acadian  war 
in  1747  up  to  the  general  league  of  the  Western  tribes  in  1703, 
he  appears  to  have  exercised  the  influence  and  power  of  an 
emperor,  and  by  this  name  he  was  sometimes  known.f  He 
had  fought  with  the  French,  at  the  head  of  his  Indian  allies, 
against  the  English  in  the  year  1747.  He  had  likewise  been 
a  conspicuous  commander  of  the  Indian  forces  in  the  defense 
of  Fort  Duquesne,  ond  took  an  active  part  in  the  memorable 
defeat  of  the  British  and  provincial  army  under  General  Brad- 
dock  in  1755. 

After  the  fall  of  Canada  and  the  humiliation  of  the  French, 
he  burned  with  an  inveterate  hatred  to  thd  English  people. 
When,  after  the  treaty  of  1763,  the  British  troops  began  to 
take  possession  of  the  northwestern  posts,  he  began  to  exert 
himself  in  uniting  and  rousing  the  Indian  tribes  in  one  com- 
mon cause  against  them,  whereby  he  hoped  to  put  a  check 


*  See  Sparks'*  VVrituigs  of  Waaliingtou,  vol.  ii.,  p.  347-349. 

t  Major  Rogers's  Account.— See  Thatcher's  Indian  Biography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  84. 


A.D.  1703.] 


VALLEY  OF    THE    MISSI^SIPPL 


337 


703, 

of  an 

He 

lies, 

been 

ensc 

)rable 

Brad- 

rench, 
eople. 
:an  to 
exert 
corn- 
check 


to  the  advance  of  their  settlements  into  the  Indian  country. 
The  general  plan  to  effect  this  object  comprised  the  capture 
and  massacre  of  all  the  western  garrisons,  and  the  extermina- 
tion of  the  western  settlements  from  the  lakes  on  the  north  to 
the  southern  limits  of  Carolina.  In  this  general  league  of 
the  savages  Pontiac  had  engaged  all  the  tribes  inhabiting 
the  whole  region  west  of  this  extensive  frontier  and  back  to 
the  Mississippi.  The  league  formed  by  him  in  this  great  un- 
dertaking was  more  extensive  than  any  which  had  ever  been 
known  upon  the  Continent.  In  all  his  plans  to  effect  the  great 
object  of  the  league,  he  seemed  to  exercise  the  power  of  an 
absolute  dictator.  Well  acquainted  with  the  geography  of  the 
whole  region,  he  planned  each  attack,  and  assigned  to  each 
band  and  leader  their  respective  stations  and  duties. 

The  general  hostile  rising  of  the  savages  was  to  be  nearly 
simultaneous  against  all  the  posts  and  settlements.  Nor  were 
active  hostilities  long  delayed.  By  the  first  of  May  the  In- 
dians were  in  full  motion  throughout  the  extensive  frontier. 
All  the  military  posts  and  forts,  before  the  middle  of  May, 
were  either  captured  or  closely  invested  by  an  Indian  siege. 
Besides  a  great  number  of  trading-posts  which  had  fallen,  with 
their  owners  and  occupants,  in  the  first  assaults,  nine  British 
forts  were  captured,  and  the  garrisons  chiefly  massacred  with 
Indian  triumph,  while  others,  more  strongly  fortified  or  more 
effectually  defended,  environed  by  hosts  of  hostile  savages,  and 
cut  oflf  froth  all  communication  with  the  settlements  east  of  the 
mountains,  suffered  with  famine  and  the  continual  apprehen- 
sion of  Indian  massacre. 

The  English  historians,  biased  by  their  insuperable  prejudice 
and  hatred  against  Catholicism,  and  their  jealousy  of  papal  su- 
premacy, have  ascribed  the  war  of  Pontiac  to  the  influence  of 
French  missionaries  and  Jesuits  among  the  Indian  tribes.  Yet 
nothing  is  more  erroneous  than  such  an  inference.  Those  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Catholic  Church  were  doubtless  the  advocates 
of  peace  and  mercy,  but  their  influence  was  insufficient  to  ex- 
tinguish revenge  from  the  savage  breast,  roused  by  wanton  and 
atrocious  murders  perpetrated  by  the  whites,*  who  were  pro- 
tected and  encouraged  in  their  encroachments  by  British  troops. 

*  Several  wanton  murders  hod  been  committed  by  the  whites  upon  the  peaceable 
Indians  near  the  Susquehanna  after  the  peace  of  1763.  These,  although  perpetrated 
by  lawless  frontier  white  men,  served  to  rouse  up  the  Indian's  revenge,  and  his  suspi- 
cious of  treachery  and  hostility  on  the  part  of  the  whites. 


3^8 


HISTORY    OF    TUB 


[book  III. 


Hostilities  once  commenced,  the  whole  Indian  confederacy 
bent  every  energy  to  its  efTectual  prosecution.  As  Dr.  Dodd- 
ridge observes,  " Never  did  military  commanders  of  any  na- 
tion display  more  skill,  or  their  troops  more  steady  and  deter- 
mined courage,  than  did  those  red  men  of  the  wilderness  in 
the  prosecution  of  their  gigantic  plan  for  the  recovery  of  their 
country  from  the  possession  of  the  English."  It  was  a  war  of 
extermination  on  a  large  scale,  where  a  few  destitute  savage 
tribes,  in  defense  of  their  country  and  their  homes,  were  ar- 
rayed against  the  colossal  power  and  resources  of  the  mistress 
of  the  civilized  world ;  a  contest  where  human  nature,  in  its 
simplest  state,  was  the  antagonist  of  wealth,  civilization,  and 
arts,  and  where  the  wild  man  was  obliged  to  call  to  his  aid  all 
the  power  of  stratagem,  treachery,  revenge,  and  cruelty  against 
the  innocent,  the  helpless,  and  the  unoffending.  Such  is  the 
stern  mode  of  savage  warfare,  which  knows  no  mercy  to  the 
feeble,  the  aged,  or  the  infant ;  where  the  youthful  mother  and 
her  tender  infant  are  alike  doomed  to  the  fate  of  the  tomahawk 
and  scalping-knife. 

The  spirit  which  animated  Pontiac,  the  Indian  emperor  in- 
this  struggle,  may  be  conceived  by  the  following  extract  of  a 
speech  made  by  him  before  a  grand  council  of  the  Western 
tribes.  After  an  eloquent  and  powerful  appeal  to  the  warriors 
against  the  advance  of  the  British  power,  he  declared  that  he 
had  been  requested  by  their  father,  the  French  king,  to  aid  him 
in  driving  out  the  English,  and  he  repeated  to  them  the  will  ot 
the  Great  Spirit,  communicated  in  a  dream  to  a  Delaware  chief. 
The  Great  Spirit  had  said  to  him,  "Why  do  you  suffer  these 
dogs  in  red  coats  to  enter  your  country  and  take  the  lands  I 
have  given  to  you  ?  Drive  them  from  it !  drive  them !  and 
when  you  are  in  trouble,  I  will  help  you."* 

Among  the  forts  or  military  posts  captured  by  the  Indians 
during  the  early  part  of  May,  were  those  of  Ouiatenon,  Green 
Bay,  Mackinaw,  St.  Joseph's,  Miami,  Sandusky,  Presque  Isle, 
Le  Beuf,  and  Venango.  Some  had  been  taken  by  open  attack, 
others  by  stratagem  and  treachery ;  and  in  nearly  all  of  them 
the  garrisons  had  shared  the  fate  of  Indian  victory,  their  bodies 
mangled  in  triumph,  and  their  blood  quaffed  in  rage. 

Besides  those  posts  which  fell  before  the  victorious  savages, 
no  less  than  six  were  beleaguered  for  many  weeks  or  months, 

*  Thatcher's  Lives  of  the  Indians,  vol.  ii.,  p.  86,  Family  Library  edition. 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MlSSISaiPPI. 


320 


lians 
Irreen 

Isle, 
[tack, 
Ithem 

)dies 


lages, 
Inths, 


until  they  were  finally  relieved  by  re-enforcements  from  the 
older  settlements  and  from  England.  The  principal  of  these 
were  Detroit,  Ligonier,  Bedford,  Cumberland,  and  Loudon, 
most  of  which  were  reduced  to  great  extremities  before  relief 
reached  them.  Niagara  was  deemed  impregnable  to  the  sav- 
ages, and  was  not  attacked.  ^ 

In  addition  to  the  destruction  of  life  and  property  at  the  forts 
and  in  their  immediate  vicinity,  the  frontier  settlements  west 
of  the  Blue  Ridge,  from  the  Susquehanna  to  the  sources  of  the 
Roanote,  were  broken  up  with  indiscriminate  massacre,  where 
the  people  could  not  eflect  their  timely  escane.  Those  who 
escaped  were  crowded  into  fortified  stations,  or  retired  with 
their  families  to  the  more  secure  parts  of  the  old  settlements 
east  of  the  mountains.  "  The  English  traders  among  the  In- 
dians were  the  first  victims  in  this  contest.  Out  of  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  of  them,  only  two  or  three  escaped  the  gen- 
eral destruction.  The  posts  of  Prescjue  Isle,  St.  Joseph,  and 
Mackinaw  were  taken,  with  a  general  slaughter  of  the  garrisons." 

Such  was  the  general  result ;  the  detail  of  some  of  the  scenes 
in  the  western  regions  may  give  some  idea  of  the  nature  of  an 
Indian  war.  "  The  work  of  extirpation  was  commenced  on  or 
about  the  same  time  from  north  to  south,  and  from  east  to 
west.  Nine  British  forts  were  captured.  Some  of  the  garri- 
sons were  completely  surprised  and  massacred  on  the  spot ;  a 
few  individuals,  in  other  cases,  escaped.  The  officer  who 
commanded  at  Presque  Isle  defended  himself  two  days.  Dur- 
ing this  time  the  savages  are  said  to  have  set  fire  to  his  block- 
house about  fifty  times,  but  the  flames  were  as  often  extinguished 
by  the  soldiers.  It  was  then  undermined  and  a  train  laid  for 
an  explosion,  when  a  capitulation  was  proposed  and  agreed 
upon,  after  which  a  part  of  the  garrison  was  carried  captive 
to  the  northwest."* 

In  the  treachery  put  in  operation  against  the  posts,  the  prom- 
inent object  was,  first,  to  obtain  possession  of  the  commanders, 
or  officers,  previous  to  any  actual  hostile  attack.  This  was  at- 
tempted, and  sometimes  successfully,  by  parties  of  Indians  gain- 
ing adm  ission  under  pretense  of  business  or  friendship ;  at  oth- 
er times  they  were  enticed  from  the  fort  without  any  apprehen- 
sion of  danger.  At  Miami,  on  the  Maumee  River,  the  com- 
mandant was  induced,  by  the  entreaties  and  cries  of  a  squaw,  to 

*  Thatcher'!  Indian  Biography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  87. 


830 


HISTORY    OF    TUB 


[book  III 


accompany  her  two  hundred  yards  from  the  fort,  to  relieve  a 
man  who,  she  said,  was  wounded  and  dying.  He  went  for  th» 
purpose  of  reheving  the  dying  man,  and  found  his  own  death 
from  a  party  of  Indians  in  ambuscade.  The  fort  was  afterward 
captured,  and  the  garrison  massacred.* 

At  Mackinaw  a  more  subtle  policy  was  adopted.  This  was 
a  very  important  post,  standing  on  the  south  side  of  the  Strait 
of  Michilimackinac,  between  Lakes  Huron  and  Michigan.  It 
was  a  place  of  deposit,  and  the  point  of  departure  between  the 
upper  and  lower  countries,  and  here  the  traders  alwftys  as- 
sembled on  their  voyages  to  and  from  Montreal.  The  post 
was  situated  on  a  fine  plain  near  the  water-level,  and  consist- 
ed of  a  stockade  inclosing  nearly  two  acres,  and  about  thirty 
small  houses,  occupied  by  as  many  families.  The  bastions 
were  mounted  with  two  small  brass  pieces  of  ordnance,  and 
the  garrison  consisted  of  about  ninety-five  men.  Near  the  time 
for  the  contemplated  at  tuck,  numerous  Indians,  apparently  quite 
friendly,  began  to  collect  about  the  fort.  At  length,  under  pre- 
tense of  celebrating  the  king's  birthday,  they  made  arrange- 
ments for  a  great  game  of  baggatiwA,  or  Indian  ball,  resembling 
the  common  game  of  racket,  in  which  each  party  strives  to  car- 
ry the  ball  to  the  opposite  boundary  of  the  field.  It  was  pre- 
tended that  a  great  wager  was  at  stake  for  the  victorious  par- 
ty. Nearly  two  hundred  Indians  were  engaged  on  each  side. 
The  play  was  about  to  commence  near  the  fort,  and  many  from 
it  were  induced  to  come  out  as  spectators.  In  the  midst  of  the 
play,  when  all  were  apparently  intent  upon  the  game,  and  en- 
gaged in  the  most  violent  exercises  of  rivalry,  the  ball  was,  as 
if  by  accident,  thrown  within  tke  stockade.  Each  party,  eager 
to  excel,  were  allowed  to  pass  directly  into  the  fort  in  pursuit 
of  the  ball.  Immediately  after  they  had  entered  the  fort,  the 
war-whoop  was  given,  and  each  Indian,  drawing  his  concealed 
weapons,  began  the  indiscriminate  massacre  of  every  English- 
man in  the  fort.  The  French  were  not  molested.  Henry,  an 
eye-witness,  states  that,  after  having  been  engaged  writing  for 
nearly  half  an  hour,  he  was  suddenly  aroused  by  a  loud  war- 
cry,  and  great  noise  and  general  confusion.  Going  to  his  win- 
dow, he  saw  a  crowd  of  Indians  within  the  fort,  furiously  cut- 
ting down  and  scalping  every  Englishman  they  found  ;  and  he 
could  plainly  witness  the  last  struggles  of  some  of  his  particu- 

*  Thatcber'a  Indian  Biography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  68. 


I 


A.D.  1703.] 


VALLEY    or   THE  MlflBIriHIITl. 


331 


•y,  an 
ig  for 
war- 
win- 
cut- 
nd  he 
rticu- 


lar  acquaintances.  Some  of  them  he  saw  fall,  and  more  than 
one  strugghng  between  the  knees  of  the  savages,  who  were 
holding  them  in  this  manner,  and  tearing  ofl*  their  sculps  while 
they  were  yet  alive.  All  show  of  resistance  was  soon  over, 
and  the  cry  was  heard  through  the  fort,  "  All  is  finished !'' 
While  this  scene  of  lilood  was  passing,  several  of  the  Canadi 
an  villagers  were  seen  looking  out  upon  the  scene  quite  com- 
posed, and  neither  interfering  nor  being  molested. 

After  the  massacre  was  over,  and  all  the  English  had  been 
hunted  up,  the  scene  of  savage  revelry  commenced.  Here  the 
observer,  who  had  been  fortunately  concealed  in  a  French- 
man's house,  beheld  the  most  ferocious  and  foul  triumphs  ot 
the  savages.  The  dead  were  scalped  and  mangled ;  the  dy- 
ing were  writhing  and  shrieking  under  the  unsatiatcd  knife 
and  reeking  tomahawk.  Some,  from  the  bodies  of  their  vic- 
tims ripped  open,  were  drinking  the  blood  scooped  up  in  the 
hollow  of  their  hands,  and  quaffed  amid  the  shouts  and  rage  ol 
victory.* 

Fort  Pitt  was  likewise  invested,  and  closely  besieged  for 
nearly  three  months.  All  communication  with  the  eastern  set- 
tlements being  intercepted  by  the  lurking  bands  of  Indians,  and 
all  succor  by  re-enforcement  being  impracticable,  the  garrison 
for  many  weeks  was  an  isolated  community,  nearly  three  hun- 
dred miles  from  the  settlements,  and  surrounded  by  fierce  bands 
of  hostile  savages.  Reduced  to  the  greatest  extremities,  star- 
vation or  Indian  massacre  seemed  their  onlv  doom.  To  them 
starvation  was  less  terrible  than  to  become  the  objects  of  In- 
dian vengeance,  and  this  heroic  band  determined  to  resist  so 
long  as  a  man  might  remain,  and  die,  if  need  be,  by  famine. 
During  this  time  every  road  was  intercepted  to  prevent  inter- 
course between  Fort  Ligonier  and  the  beleaguered  post.  All 
messengers  who  attempted  to  penetrate  from  Fort  Pitt  were 
either  killed  by  the  Indians,  or  were  compelled  to  return  to 
the  fort  by  the  lurking  Indians  on  the  way.  During  this  time 
the  fort  was  continually  beset  by  a  host  of  savages,  who 
made  daily  attacks  upon  the  stockade,  while  their  sharp-shoot- 
ers, lying  concealed  under  the  banks  of  the  Monongahela  and 
Alleghany  Rivers,  poured  a  destructive  volley  of  bullets  when- 
ever any  of  the  garrison  dared  to  expose  any  part  of  their  per- 
sons over  the  piquets  or  outside  the  inclosure.f     Lighted  ar- 

*  Thatcher'a  Ind.  Biog.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  68-92.        f  Oordon's  Hist,  of  Pciuigylvanin,  p.  399. 


332 


IIIDTURV    or    THE 


[book  III. 


row'8  were  daily  shot  upon  the  stockade  and  houses  for  burn* 
ing  them  down. 

At  length,  General  Amherst,  commander-in-chief  of  his  maj- 
esty's forces  in  North  America,  detached  a  strong  re-enforce- 
ment with  three  hundred  and  forty  horses,  loaded  with  sup- 
plies and  ammunition,  under  Colonel  Bouquet,  for  the  relief 
of  the  garrison.  This  whole  detachment,  of  more  than  six  hun- 
dred men,  had  well-nigh  been  cut  off  by  the  savages  within  a 
few  miles  of  the  fort.  As  usual,  the  savages,  by  their  runners 
and  spies,  became  well  apprised  of  every  movement  made  by 
any  portion  of  the  English  armies.  They  accordingly  selected 
a  dangerous  defde  on  Turtle  Creek,  and  only  about  fitleen  miles 
from  Fort  Pitt,  as  a  suitable  place  to  cut  off  the  advancing  re- 
enforcement.  Through  this  defile  the  detachment  must  neces- 
sarily pass,  and  here,  on  the  4th  of  August,  the  Indian  ambus- 
cade was  laid.  Nothing  but  the  extraordinary  courage  and 
presence  of  mind  in  the  commander,  seconded  by  his  brave 
troops,  saved  the  corps  from  utter  destruction.  After  having 
sustained  a  desperate  contest  for  several  hours,  until  the  man- 
tle of  night  spread  its  protection  over  them,  they  stood  upon 
their  guard  until  the  morning  light.  After  several  hours'  hard 
fighting  again  in  the  morning,  Colonel  Bouquet  resolved  to 
practice  the  Indian  stratagem  upc  n  the  savages.  Carefully 
posting  four  companies  in  ambuscade,  he  feigned  a  rapid  re- 
treat with  the  troops  who  were  actively  engaged.  The  In- 
dians, as  if  sure  of  victory,  pressed  forward  after  the  retreat- 
ing enemy,  without  order,  and  thoughtless  of  danger,  until 
suddenly  the  terrible  fire  in  their  rear  convinced  them  that 
they  were  between  two  fires.  Instantly  throWn  into  the  great- 
est consternation  and  confusion,  they  fled  precipitately  from 
the  field  of  action.  The  loss  of  the  English  was  severe ;  one 
hundred  men  were  killed  and  wounded.  That  of  the  Indians 
was  equally  severe,  and  some  of  their  most  distinguished  chiefs 
were  slain.  The  detachment  arrived  at  Fort  Pitt  four  days 
afterward,*  and  the  Indians  dispersed. 

In  the  mean  time,  Detroit  was  beleaguered  by  a  formidable 
body  of  western  savages,  under  the  immediate  command  of 
Pontiac  himself.  The  Indians  appeared  before  this  post  on  the 
8th  of  May,  and  the  siege,  with  innumerable  attacks,  was  con- 
tinued without  intermission  until  the  last  of  August ;  and,  with 

*  Doddridge's  Notei,  p.  818,  819-    Qordon's  Penniylvania,  p.  401,  402. 


A.D.  1763.] 


VAM'EY    OT   TIIR    MIMIflOIPPI, 


33.') 


ible 

of 

the 


occasional  relaxations  only,  from  that  tin><)  uriiil  next  spring,  al- 
together about  twelve  months.  Afler  lu*)  KiHt  of  August,  niany 
of  the  allies  and  warriors  of  Pontiuc,  wearied  with  the  toil  and 
privations  of  the  siege,  retired  to  their  t('Wns  and  families. 

Detroit  was  one  of  the  most  in  (xtrtant  of  the  western  posts, 
although,  like  most  of  them,  its  irrison  had  been  reduced  dur- 
ing the  apparent  pacification  of  ?  lie  Indian  tribes,  immediately 
preceding  the  outbreak  of  host  jities.  At  the  time  of  the  siege 
it  was  a  rich  object  for  savage  plunder,  far  exceeding  any  other 
western  post,  being  at  that  time  the  general  depot  of  gootls  and 
merchandise  for  the  whole  Indian  trade,  to  the  value  of  nearly 
half  a  million  of  poun'.l8  sterling.  Many  of  the  western  trad- 
ers had  arrived,  anH  were  moving  forward  to  monopolize  the 
Indian  fur  trade,  the  fort  was  a  stockaded  village  on  the 
bank  of  the  Detroit  River,  with  bastions  mounting  six  small 
pieces  of  ordnance,  and  defended  by  a  garrison  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty  men,  besides  about  forty  persons  who  were  connect- 
ed with  the  fur  trade. 

On  the  8th  of  May,  Pontiac  presented  himself  before  the  fort 
with  three  hundred  Ottawa  and  Chippewa  warriors,  and  de- 
manded of  the  commandant.  Major  Gladwyn,  a  council.  The 
commandant  refused  to  admit  the  whole  force  of  Pontiac,  but 
consented  to  admit  him  and  forty  of  his  associates,  who  should 
hold  a  council  with  him  in  the  fort.  The  main  body  of  the  In- 
dians retired  to  their  camp,  about  one  mile  distant,  when  Pon- 
tiac and  his  forty  associates  were  admitted.  In  the  mean  time. 
Major  Gladwyn,  having  received  intimation  of  treachery  and 
hostile  intentions  from  an  Indian  squaw,  had  put  the  fort  and 
garrison  in  a  state  of  complete  defense.  Pontiac  and  his  war- 
riors, all  secretly  armed,  entered  the  fort ;  but,  seeing  the  troops 
under  arms,  and  every  man  at  his  post,  he  inquired,  "  Why  all 
this  parade  of  arms?"  and  finally  declined  to  give  the  signal 
for  the  massacre  to  his  warriors.  Their  secret  arms  were 
soon  after  discovered  by  Major  Gladwyn,  when  he  dismissed 
Pontiac  and  his  band  from  the  fort,  with  reproaches  for  his 
treachery.  As  they  retired  from  the  gate,they  gave  the  Indian 
yell,  and  discharged  their  short  fire-arms  upon  the  fort  with 
little  or  no  injury.  The  Indians  under  the  command  of  Pontiac 
immediately  proceeded  to  the  houses  in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort, 
and  commenced  an  indiscriminate  massacre  of  such  persons  as 
were  found  outside  of  the  stockade.     The  night  was  spent  in 


334 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III 


savage  revelry  over  the  helpless  victims  of  their  revenge,  while 
others  lurked  about  the  fort,  under  the  darkness  of  the  night, 
and  secreted  themselves  behind  houses,  fences,  and  trees  for 
an  opportunity  to  shoot  down  any  who  should  venture  to  ex- 
pose themselves  from  the  fort  after  daylight. 

The  next  day  Pontiac  renewed  his  eiforts  and  stratagems  to 
induce  the  officers  of  the  fort  to  meet  him  in  council  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  small  arms  of  the  garrison.  One  officer,  who  vol- 
untarily went  out  to  meet  the  chiefs  with  three  attendants, 
was  detained  and  subsequently  put  to  death. 

On  the  10th  of  May  the  Indians  made  a  resolute  attack  upon 
the  fort,  and  kept  up  a  brisk  fire  the  whole  day  from  behind 
houses,  fences,  barns,  and  trees,  within  gunshot  of  the  palisades, 
while  the  main  body  of  the  savage  army  was  kept  at  a  respect- 
ful distance  by  the  ordnance  of  the  fort.  The  force  of  tho  sav- 
ages was  rapidly  increasing  every  day,  and  already  amounted 
to  about  seven  hundred  warriors.  Major  Gladwyn  began  to 
apprehend  serious  danger  to  the  garrison  and  inmates  of  the 
stockade,  and  contemplated  secretly  leaving  the  post,  and  de- 
scending the  river  with  his  command ;  but  being  informed  by 
an  experienced  Frenchman  that  the  Indians  never  contemplate 
an  open  assault  in  daylight  and  in  the  face  of  cannon,  he  deter- 
mined to  remain  and  defend  the  fort  to  the  last  extremity. 
From  this  time  every  person  in  the  fort  capable  of  duty  was 
closely  employed  to  prevent  any  secret  attack,  and  to  avoid 
any  stratagem  laid  for  them  either  by  night  or  by  day. 

At  length  Pontiac  demanded  the  surrender  of  the  fort  by 
capitulation,  requiring  the  British  to  lay  down  their  arms,  and 
march  out  as  the  French  had  done.  This  being  refused,  he 
renewed  his  attacks  with  increased  vigor  and  frequency.  So 
unremitted  were  his  attacks  for  several  weeks,  that  neither  of- 
ficers nor  men  were  allowed  to  take  off*  their  clothes  to  sleep, 
all  being  continually  engaged  about  the  ramparts.  During  this 
time  the  whole  number  of  effective  men,  exclusive  of  sick  and 
wounded,  and  including  two  vessels  in  the  river,  was  only  one 
hundred  and  twelve. 

Every  plan  of  annoyance  was  put  in  operation.  Floating 
fire-rafts  were  repeatedly  prepared  and  sent  against  the  vessels 
in  the  river  for  the  purpose  of  destroying  them,  and  with  great 
difficulty  they  were  preserved  from  the  flames.  Parties  were 
continually  hovering  near  the  fort  under  some  concealment, 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSIHSIPPI. 


335 


)ating 

,'essels 

great 

were 

llinent, 


for  the  purpose  of  taking  off,  by  their  marksmen,  any  who  might 
incautiously  expose  themselves  in  the  fort,  while  other  detach- 
ed parties  scoured  the  country  around  in  every  direction,  to  in- 
tercept every  kind  of  aid  or  succor  intended  for  the  garrison. 

In  the  month  of  June,  a  detachment  of  fifty  men,  with  a  sup- 
ply of  provisions  from  Niagara,  on  their  voyage  to  Detroit  had 
been  entirely  cut  off,  and  the  supplies  captured  by  the  Indians. 
Soon  afterward,  another  detachment  of  one  hundred  men,  with 
a  supply  of  provisions  and  ammunition  from  Fort  Niagara,  had 
reached  the  Detroit  River,  within  half  a  day's  sail  of  the  fort, 
when,  having  landei'  and  encamped  for  the  night,  they  were 
attacked  by  a  strong  party  of  Indians  and  entirely  defeated, 
with  the  loss  of  their  commander  and  seventy  men,  besides  the 
supplies,  which  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  along  with  a 
few  prisoners.* 

Scenes  of  unparalleled  barbarity  continued  to  be  perpetrated 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort  upon  every  Englishman  whom  they 
could  intercept.  It  was  a  matter  of  almost  daily  occurrence 
for  the  garrison  to  behold  the  dead  and  mangled  bodies  of 
their  countrymen  floating  past  the  fort ;  every  family  and  in- 
dividual in  the  vicinity  had  been  murdered  in  the  most  horrid 
manner,  and  every  habitation  destroyed  by  fire. 

On  the  iJOth  of  July,  a  re-enforcement,  under  Captain  Dalzel, 
from  Niagara,  amounting  to  two  hiuidred  and  fifty  regular 
troops,  succeeded  in  reaching  the  fort  in  safety.  On  the  same 
evening  a  sally  was  made  by  three  hundred  men  against  the 
Indian  breast-work  within  less  than  a  mile  from  the  fort.  This 
detachment  was  fiercely  encountered  by  the  savages  and  furi- 
ously repulsed,  with  the  loss  of  seventy  men  killed  and  forty 
wounded.     Captain  Dalzel  was  among  the  slain.f 

The  whole  number  of  troops  lost  during  the  siege  of  Detroit 
was  but  little  short  of  three  hundred,  besides  individuals  uncMm- 
nected  with  the  army ;  the  exact  number,  however,  has  never 
been  correctly  ascertained. 

While  these  things  were  transpiring  at  the  military  posts, 
the  whole  frontier  settlements,  from  north  to  south,  were  deso- 
lated with  fire  and  blood.  In  Pennsylvania,  "  the  whole  coun- 
try west  of  Shippensburg  became  the  prey  of  the  fierce  barba- 
rians.    They  set  fire  to  houses,  barns,  corn,  hay,  and  every  thing 

•  See  Dodilridgc,  p.  217,  218.    Also,  Thatcher's  ludian  Biography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  0•.^-Ul7 
t  IJcui. 


33G 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  III. 


which  was  combustible.  The  wretched  inhabitants,  whom 
they  surprised  at  night,  at  their  meals,  or  in  the  labors  of  the 
field,  were  massacred  with  the  utmost  cruelty  and  barbarity ; 
and  those  who  fled  were  scarcely  more  happy.  Overwhelmed 
by  sorrow,  without  shelter,  or  the  means  of  transportation, 
their  tardy  flight  was  impeded  by  fainting  women  and  weeping 
children.  The  inhabitants  of  Shippensburg  and  Carlisle,  now 
become  the  barrier  towns,  opened  their  hearts  and  their  houses 
to  their  afflicted  brethren.  In  the  towns,  every  stable  and 
hovel  was  crowded  with  miserable  refugees,  who,  having  lost 
their  houses,  their  cattle,  and  their  harvest,  were  reduced  from 
independence  and  happiness  to  beggary  and  despair.  The 
streets  were  filled  with  people  ;  the  men  distracted  by  grief  (or 
their  losses,  and  the  desire  of  revenge,  more  poignant  from  the 
disconsolate  females  and  bereaved  children  who  wailed  around 
them.  For  some  miles  on  both  sides  of  the  Susquehanna,  many 
families,  with  their  cattle,  sought  shelter  in  the  woods,  being 
unable  to  find  it  in  the  towns."  The  city  of  Philadelphia,  as  well 
as  the  adjoining  counties,  contributed  largely  to  their  relief.* 

This  state  of  things  in  Pennsylvania  is  only  a  specimen  of 
what  existed  for  more  than  eight  hundred  miles  along  the 
western  frontier,  as  far  south  as  Maryland  and  Virginia. 

Among  the  hostilities  in  Pennsylvania  during  the  early  part 
of  this  war,  we  must  enumerate  the  horrible  massacre  of  the 
whole  population  of  the  Valley  of  Wyoming,  on  the  east  branch 
of  the  Susquehanna.  At  the  same  time,  all  the  great  branch- 
es of  the  Susquehanna  were  in  the  sole  occupancy  of  the  hos- 
tile Indians. 

The  plan  of  the  Indian  hostilities  had  embraced  not  only  the 
destruction  of  all  the  western  population,  but  likewise  all  the 
grain  and  growing  crops,  so  as  effectually  to  prevent  a  return 
•»f  the  inhabitants,  who  had  generally  fled  from  their  homes  to 
seek  safety  among  the  older  settlements. 

Among  the  first  massacres  in  Western  Virginia  during  this 
war  were  those  of  "  Muddy  Creek"  and  "  Big  Levels,"  upou 
the  upper  tributaries  of  the  Greenbrier  River.  The  people  of 
these  reiP'^te  settlements,  distant  alike  from  the  Atlantic  bor- 
der and  from  the  country  occupied  by  the  Indians,  had  re- 
ceived no  intelligence  of  a  renewal  of  hostilities  until  they 
were  ovcrwhelnuMl  in  destruction.     Presuming  that  the  treaty 

*  Qordun'a  History  of  Pciiusylvdjiia,  p.  3!}U. 


A.D.  1763.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


337 


11^  this 
upoii 
|)j)le  of 
Ic  l)or- 
liid  rc- 
tlicy 
Itreaty 


of  1763  had  pacified  the  whole  Indian  confederacy,  the  settlers 
in  these  re»r"ote  regions  entertained  no  apprehension  of  danger. 
In  this  state  of  security,  they  felt  no  alarm  when  they  beheld 
their  settlement  visited  by  nearly  sixty  Indians  under  the  guise 
of  friendship.  The  Indians  were  received  ^yith  that  cordial 
hospitality  so  common  to  the  frontier  people. 

At  Muddy  Creek,  suddenly,  and  without  any  previous  hos- 
tile indication,  after  a  refreshing  meal,  they  commenced  killing 
all  the  men  in  the  settlement,  and  made  prisoners  of  the  women 
and  children. 

Having  secured  the  prisoners  under  a  suitable  guard,  the 
party  proceeded  to  the  "  Big  Levels,"  about  fifteen  miles  dis- 
tant, and  before  any  intimation  of  the  fate  of  Muddy  Creek  had 
preceded  them.  At  this  settlement  they  were  treated  with 
great  hospitality  and  friendship.  Archibald  Glendennen  gave 
them  a  sumptuous  feast  upon  a  fat  elk  which  he  had  recently 
killed.  A^  the  conclusion  of  their  feast,  they  began,  without  cer- 
emony or  provocation,  to  murder  all  the  men,  and  to  secure 
the  women  and  children  as  prisoners,  as  they  had  done  at 
Muddy  Creek.* 

In  the  massacre  at  Big  Levels,  the  signal  was  given  by  a 
chief,  as  follows :  An  old  woman,  who  had  a  sore  leg,  showed 
it  to  the  Indian,  and  requested  his  advice  how  it  might  be  cured. 
After  examining  the  sore,  without  ceremony  he  drew  his 
hatchet,  and  laid  her  lifeless  at  his  feet  by  a  single  blow  upon 
the  head.  This  was  the  signal  for  the  general  assault,  and  the 
massacre  was  instantly  commenced. 

When  these  disasters  became  known  in  Botetourt  county 
several  days  afterward,  a  party  of  volunteer  armed  men  as- 
sembled, who  went  to  the  deoolate  settlements  and  buried  the 
dead  bodies,  which,  till  that  time,  lay  s  aUered  where  they  had 
fallen,  except  that  of  Glendennen,  which  had  been  imperfectly 
buried  by  his  wife.f 

As  late  as  the  22d  of  June,  the  Indians  were  still  committing 

•  Dmldriil^'c's  Notog,  p.  222. 

I  Mrs.  Glonilennpii  wns  nmong  the  prisoncrg.  SIio  ImliUy  rhargcd  the  TiuliuiiR  with 
cowardice,  and  npbraidcd  tliem  with  treachery  in  asRuming  the  uiagk  of  friondghip  tn 
cnmmit  murder.  One  of  the  Indiaiig,  exasperated  with  her  boldness  and  the  tnith  of 
her  charge,  brandished  liis  tomahawk  over  her  head.and  then  Ninppcd  hcrhu.sbiiiid'g  scalp 
in  her  face.  Next  day,  after  man-hini?  ton  miles  with  the  captives,  she  oscopcd  from 
the  Indians  in  passing  a  thicket,  lea-  '  '  <icr  infant  with  the  enemy.  Her  absence 
soon  after  was  discovered  by  the  cry  of  the  child  for  itE>  mother,  when  one  of  the  sova- 
ges,  taking  'he  child  in  his  hands,  and  saying  lie  would  soon  bring  the  cow  to  her  coif. 

Vol.  I.— Y 


338 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  III. 


depredations  and  murders  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Cumberland, 
on  the  Potomac ;  and  nine  persons  had  been  killed  within  the 
last  ten  days.  At  this  time  the  whole  population  of  this  region, 
to  the  number  of  nearly  five  hundred  families,  on  the  frontiers, 
poor  and  destitute,  leaving  all  behind,  had  fled  to  the  eastern 
settlements.*  Indeed,  itie  whole  western  frontier,  for  nearly  a 
thousand  miles,  from  north  to  south,  presented  a  scene  of  un- 
precedented terror  and  flight. 

On  the  23d  of  June,  Fort  Ligonier,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Laurel  Hill,  and  sixty  miles  east  of  Fort  Pitt,  was  invested  by 
a  large  body  of  Indians,  who  kept  up  a  vigorous  attack  for 
twenty-four  hours.  On  the  27th  of  July,  Fort  Loudon,  on  the 
site  of  the  present  town  of  Winchester,  in  Virginia,  and  not 
more  than  one  hundred  feet  square,  contained  more  than  two 
hundred  women  and  children,  who  had  sought  its  shelter  from 
the  seal  ping-knife. 

At  this  time,  Shippensburg  and  Carlisle,  in  Pennsylvania,  not 
thirty  miles  west  of  Harrisburg,  were  frontier  towns  ;  and  all 
the  remote  settlements  west  of  them  had  been  broken  up,  and 
the  inhabitants  had  fled  eastward  for  safety.  The  few  who 
remained  were  secured  in  stations,  or  strong  palisade  inclos- 
ures,  from  the  midnight  attacks  o^  savage  bands  prowling  for 
scalps  and  plunder. 

At  the  same  time,  "Greenbrier  Kiver  and  Jackson  River 
were  depopulated ,"an(^  nearly  thkes  hundred  persons  had  been 
killed  or  taken  prisoners  by  the  Indians.  Not  one  family  was 
found  on  their  plantations  on  this  frontier,  for  three  hundred 
miles  in  length  and  one  hundred  in  width.  By  the  consterna- 
tion which  had  spread  in  this  region,  nearly  twenty  thousand 
persons  were  thrown  out  of  house  and  home,  to  seek  shelter 
and  safety  east  of  the  mountains.f 

Late  in  July,  such  was  the  state  of  public  apprehension  and 
alarm  at  the  secret  incursions  of  scalping  parties  of  Indians, 
that  the  smallest  circumstance  often  caused  great  alarm.  In 
the  eastern  part  of  New  York,  about  the  last  of  July,  a  party 
of  men  having  returned  from  a  deer  hunt  over  the  western  hills, 
in  the  vicinity  of  Goshen,  suddenly  fired  four  guns  in  quick 

dashed  out  its  brains  against  a  tree.    The  mother  having  made  her  e8fnj>i\  returned  to 
tho  settlement  and  imperfecfij'  huricd  her  husband,  when  she  found  lierself  tlie  only 
survivor  ruruainin^^'  of  t>uth  settlements,  nlunc  in  the  midst  of  a  dreary  wilderness,  and 
lurrDunded  hy  tlie  mmr,'led  iKxlies  of  her  friends  and  neighbors. — Doddridge,  p.  223. 
*  Thatcher's  Indioit  Biography,  vol.  i.,  p.  112.  t  Idem,  p.  113. 


A.D.  1703.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


330 


been 

was 

ludred 

terna- 

isatid 

lelter 

and 

idians, 

In 

party 

n  hills, 

quick 

turned  to 
the  only 
2BI,  and 
223. 
113. 


succession  at  a  flock  of  partridges.  The  reports  having  been 
heard  in  the  vicinity,  were  supposed  to  indicate  the  approach 
of  Indians,  and  alarm-guns  were  fired  over  the  whole  neigh- 
borhood, and  the  people  commenced  an  immediate  and  general 
flight,  until  the  whole  settlements  were  in  utter  confusion  and 
consternation.  Those  in  their  houses  gathered  up  what  they 
could  carry,  and  with  their  children  sought  safety  in  flight ; 
those  who  were  with  their  teams  in  the  fields  cut  the  horses 
loose  in  haste,  and  made  their  escape  w'.'i  them ;  those  who 
had  no  boats  to  cross  the  river  plunged  in  with  their  wives,  or 
children  on  their  backs.  .  In  this  manner  the  consternation 
spread  from  one  to  another,  until  nearly  five  hundred  families 
had  left  their  homes  and  property,  as  they  supposed,  to  the 
mercy  of  the  Indians.  Some  continued  their  flight  to  the  bor- 
ders of  New  England  before  they  were  undeceived. 

Early  in  October,  about  twenty  persons  had  been  killed  by 
Indians  in  the  vicinity  of  Allenstown  and  Bethlehem,  on  Le- 
high River,  in  Pennsylvania  ;  and  such  was  the  general  conster- 
nation, that  "  most  of  the  people  in  the  vicinity  had  fled  from 
their  habitations."* 

It  is  not  our  design  to  recount  all  the  deeds  of  blood  and  cru- 
elty perpetrated  upon  the  frontier  people  by  the  hostile  Indians. 
The  feelings  of  humanity  are  shocked,  and  recoil  at  the  recita- 
tion of  them.  The  sketch  already  given  may  serve  to  con- 
vey a  faint  idea  of  the  calamities  endured  by  the  wretched  in- 
habitants subject  to  the  horrors  of  Indian  warfare. 

During  the  following  winter,  detached  scalping  parties  of 
Indians  continued  to  traverse  the  border  regions,  and  to  prowl 
about  the  forts  on  the  western  parts  of  Pennsylvania,  Virginia, 
and  North  Carolina,  committing  such  depredations  and  mur- 
ders as  served  to  keep  the  whole  exposed  population  in  a  state 
of  continual  dread  and  fearful  apprehension  for  their  personal 
safety. 

Although  the  savages  at  all  times,  in  their  hostile  incursions 
upon  the  settlements,  commit  the  most  inhuman  barbarities 
upon  the  helpless  and  unprotected,  there  are  among  the  fron- 
tier people  occasionally  men  equally  depraved,  and  who  in 
deeds  of  blood  are  scarcely  superior  to  the  most  ferocious  sav- 
ages. In  some  instances,  indeed,  the  whites,  exasperated  to 
phrensy  by  the  repeated  murders  atrociously  perpetrated  upon 

*  Sec  Thatcher's  Indian  Biography,  vol.  ii.,  p.  1?,3,  IK. 


340 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book   III. 


It)     ', 


their  friends  and  relatives  by  the  savages,  have  been  impelled, 
by  feelings  of  revenge,  to  deeds  of  blood  at  which  humanity 
weeps.  Such  was  the  phrensied  revenge  of  the  "Paxton 
Boys."  These  desperadoes, 'prompted  by  a  fanatical  delusion, 
that  the  massacre  of  Wyoming  was  a  judgment  from  God  for 
"  sparing  the  Canaanites  in  the  land,"  organized  themselves 
into  a  bandit  corps,  and,  disregarding  law  or  any  civil  author- 
ity of  the  state,  proceeded  to  commit  the  most  revolting  bar- 
barities upon  the  peaceable  and  innocent  Conestago  Indians, 
as  a  retaliation  for  the  acts  perpetrated  by  the  hostile  tribes. 
Dr.  Doddridge  says,  "  They  rivaled  the  most  ferocious  of  the 
Indians  themselves  in  deeds  of  cruelty  which  have  dishonored 
the  history  of  our  country ;  shedding  innocent  blood  without 
the  slightest  provocation,  in  deeds  of  the  most  atrocious  bar- 
barity."* 

The  Conestago  Indians  were  the  remains  of  the  Conesta- 
go tribe,  the  early  friends  of  William  Penn,  whose  descendants, 
for  more  than  a  century,  had  lived  in  peace  and  friendship  with 
the  whites.  This  remnant  of  a  tribe,  about  forty  in  number, 
were  the  first  victims  of  this  infuriate  and  demoniacal  band. 
They  were  murdered  in  cold  blood,  in  the  midst  of  a  civil  gov- 
ernment too  weak  to  protect  the  weakest. 

The  same  vengeance  would  have  been  wreaked  equally  upon 
the  peaceable  and  inoffensive  Christian  Indians  of  the  villages 
of  Wequetank  and  Nain,  had  not  the  state  authorities  at  length 
succeeded  in  protecting  them.f 

[A.D.  1764.]     Such  had  been  the  disasters  to  the  British 

•  Doildriilge's  Notes  on  Virginia,  p.  220. 

t  Althou.rh  tliis  subject  is  properly  beyond  the  limits  of  our  prescribed  history,  yet, 
ns  it  is  connected  with  the  Indian  hostilities  of  1763,  wo  will  take  this  further  notice 
of  this  bandit  corps.  This  band,  laborini,'  under  a  delusion  which  ha<l  been  encouraged 
by  cortttin  fanatics,  that  it  was  their  duty  to  exterminate  the  Indians,  as  Joshua  did 
the  Cmiawiites  of  old,  organized  into  a  military  bond,  and  set  all  law  at  defiance.  On 
the  Htli  day  oli  December,  1763,  fifty -seven  of  these  men,  in  military  array,  entered  the 
Conestago  village  alx)ut  ilaybreak,  and  humediatcly,  with  the  most  cnnd  barbarity, 
murdered  every  soiJ  that  was  foujid  in  the  village,  amounting  in  all  to  fourteen,  includ- 
ing women  and  children.  I'lie  remainder  of  them  happened  to  be  absent  about  the 
white  settlements,  and  were  taken  in  charge  by  the  civil  authorities,  who  jiluced  them 
in  the  jail  of  Liincaster  for  protection.  But  this  p.:  "aution  was  unavailing;  liie  I'nx- 
ton  Boys  broke  open  the  jail,  and  murdered  the  wiiole,  to  the  additional  number  of 
nearly  twenty.  In  vain  did  the  poor,  defenseless  creatures,  upon  tlieir  knees,  protest 
their  innocence  and  implore  mercy.  Nor  did  the  death  of  these  victims  satisfy  these 
flends  in  human  shape ;  tlioy  mangled  the  dead  l><)dies  with  Hcalping-knives  and  toma 
hawks  in  the  most  savage  and  bnital  maimer.  Even  the  children  were  Bciil|ied.  and 
their  fe"t  and  hands  chopped  off  with  tomahawks.  The  authorities  of  Pennsyl- 
vania removed  the  Indians  of  Weiiuetank  and  N.;  .,  under  a  strong  guard,  to  Phil- 


A.D.   1704.]  VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


341 


)rj'.  yet, 
(r  notice 
louruged 
lima  did 
Iro.     On 
•red  tlic 
|ii-l)«rity, 
i,  iiw'lud. 
hout  tlie 
Ld  liicin 
llie  Pax 
inii)or  of 
I,  protest 
Ify  these 
lid  toma 
lied,  ami 
Peiinsyl- 
I  to  Phil 


arms,  and  such  the  consternation  and  slaughter  in  the  prov- 
inces during  the  past  year,  that  the  Enghsh  government,  as 
well  as  the  provinces,  had  determined  to  prosecute  the  war 
with  vigor,  and  to  give  security  to  the  frontier  settlements  du- 
ring the  next  campaign  by  carrying  the  war,  with  fire  and  des- 
olation, into  the  enemy's  country. 

Early  in  the  spring,  active  preparations  were  in  operation 
throughout  the  provinces  for  the  chastisement  of  the  hostile  In- 
dians, and  for  the  protection  of  the  frontiers  from  the  merciless 
fury  of  savage  warfare.  Troops  were  fast  concentrating  upon 
the  remote  posts  near  the  lakes,  and  upon  the  Ohio  region. 

Early  in  June,  General  Bradstreet,  with  three  thousand  troops, 
reached  Fort  Niagara  on  his  route  to  re-enforce  the  garrisons 
in  the  western  posts.  While  at  Niagara,  the  Indian:^  from 
the  northwest  made  overtures  for  peace,  and  the  general  de- 
manded of  them  a  grand  council,  to  confirm  their  professions 
by  a  treaty  of  peace.  At  length  nearly  two  thousand  Indians 
were  assembled  near  Fort  Niagara,  and  among  them  were  rep- 
resentatives and  chiefs  from  twenty-two  nations,  and  embracing 
those  from  eleven  of  the  remote  northwestern  tribes.  A  treaty 
was  soon  after  concluded  between  his  majesty's  superintendent 
of  Indian  aflfairs,  Sir  William  Johnson,  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain,  and  the  chiefs,  sachems,  and  warriors  of  the  respective 
tribes.  The  treaty  stipulates  for  peace  and  friendship,  and  a 
cession  of  certain  lands  to  Great  Britain  lying  south  of  Lakes 
Ontario  and  Erie.*  But  Pontiac  was  not  there,  nor  would  he 
sanction  the  treaty. 

General  Bradstreet  sailed  from  Detroit,  and,  after  a  narrow 
escape  from  shipwreck  with  his  whole  army  on  Lake  Erie,  off 
the  present  city  of  Cleveland,  he  arrived  safely  at  Detroit.     Af- 

adelphia,  where  thoy  remained  under  guard,  cither  in  the  barracka  or  atate-prison,  for 
more  than  one  year,  or  from  November,  1763,  to  December,  1764.  During  tiiis  time,  Uic 
Paxtou  Boys  tusemble<l  in  force  several  times  for  t^  c  purpose  of  assaulting  the  bar- 
racks and  wresting  the  helpless  Indians  from  the  guard,  to  gratify  their  thirst  for  blood. 
The  prciioralion  and  show  of  firmness  by  the  miUtary  in  their  defense  prevented  an 
assault.  In  this  instance,  as  in  all  other  outrages  against  the  rights  and  persona  of  the 
Indians,  the  civil  authorities  of  the  States  have  interfered  in  their  behalf  against  the 
ferocity  of  the  white  man. 

The  Paxton  Boys  at  length  began  to  commit  outrages  upon  their  fellow -citizens ; 
and  such  was  tlio  terror  inspired  by  their  acts  and  threats,  that  no  man  felt  safe  to  act 
01'  speak  against  them. — See  Doddridge's  Notes. 

For  a  more  full  acrount  of  tliis  bandit  clan  and  their  fanaticism,  see  Proud's  History 
of  Pennsylvania,  vol.  ii.,  p.  335-330.    Also,  Qurdon's  Peimsylvania,  p.  405. 

'  Gordon's  History  of  Pennsylvania,  p.  438. 


342 


IIIdTORY    or    TUB 


[nouK  III. 


ter  making  several  incursions  against  hostile  towns,  and  chas- 
tising several  bunds  of  hostile  warriors,  opposed  to  the  l.-ito 
treaty,  overtures  of  peace  were  received  from  them.  Nego- 
tiations for  a  truce  were  opened,  which  soon  after  resulted  in 
a  peace  with  all  the  northwestern  tribes,  except  the  Shawu- 
uese  and  Delawares  of  the  Scioto.  Pontiac  would  take  no  part 
in  the  treaty,  and  remained  adverse  to  peace.  Soon  afterward  he 
retired  to  the  Illinois  River,  where  he  still  meditated  vengeance 
against  the  English  for  nearly  twelve  months  afterward.  He 
continued  to  reside  on  the  Illinois  until  the  summer  of  1 707,  when 
he  was  assassinated  in  the  council-house  by  a  Peoria  chief.* 

In  the  mean  time,  Colonel  Bouquet  invaded  the  Indian  coun- 
try south  of  Lake  Erie,  and  upon  the  branches  of  the  Muskin- 
gum River.  Marching  from  Fort  Pitt  on  the  3d  of  October,  he 
advanced  through  the  Indian  territory,  spreading  terror  and 
death  among  the  savages,  destroying  their  fields  and  burning 
their  towns,  until  the  25th  of  October,  when  he  encamped  at 
the  Forks,  or  junction  of  the  Tuscarawa  and  Walhonding 
Rivers.f  Here  he  received  overtures  of  peace,  which  were 
accepted,  and  he  dictated  his  terms  to  the  hostile  tribes  of  the 
Delawares,  Senecas,  and  Shawanese.^ 

The  surrender  of  prisoners,  which  had  been  one  of  the  first 
requisitions,  took  place  soon  afterward ;  the  Indians  surren- 
dered two  hundred  and  six  prisoners,  men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, and  delivered  over  hostages  for  the  surrender  of  others. 
Peace  being  thus  ratified  with  these  tribes.  Colonel  Bouquet 
returned  with  his  victorious  army  and  his  rescued  captives  to 
Fort  Pitt,  to  the  great  joy  of  all  the  provinces. 

General  Stanwix,  who  had  succeeded  to  the  command  of 
the  northwestern  army,  had  taken  measures  for  convening  a 
grand  council  of  the  western  tribes,  and  specially  of  the  Six 
Nations  and  their  confederates,  to  be  held  in  the  month  of  No- 
vember, at  the  "  German  Flats,"  on  the  Mohawk  River.  The 
council  accordingly  convened,  and  the  chiefs,  warriors,  and  sa- 
chems of  the  Six  Nations  therein  ratified  and  confirmed  the 
previous  treaty  of  Niagara,  and  entered  into  a  general  article 
of  friendship  and  alliance  with  the  British  crown,  as  they  had 
formerly  done  with  the  King  of  France. 

By  this  treaty,  designated  as  the  "  Treaty  of  the  German 


*  Thatcher'^  Indian  Biograpliy,  vol.  ii ,  < 
;  American  Pioneer,  vol.  i.,  p.  240. 


107. 


t  Gordon's  Pennsylvania,  p.  43«!-. 


A.D.  1765.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MIBSISSIPri. 


343 


Flats,"  the  Six  Nations  ceded  extensive  tracts  of  land  to  the 
English  provinces  of  New  York  and  Pennsylvania.  On  the 
6th  day  of  December  following,  the  treaty  was  proclaimed 
throughout  the  provinces,  and  peace  was  established  with  the 
Six  Nations  and  their  confederates. 


d  of 
ng  a 
Six 
No- 
The 
d  sa- 
the 
rticle 
had 


CHAPTER  II. 

ADVANCE  OF  THE  ANGLO-AMERICAN   POPULATION  TO  THE  OHIO  Bl\- 
£R. SETTLEMENTS  AND  EXPLORATIONS. A.D.   1765  TO  1774. 

Argument. — SottlemenU  ipriiig  up  nea;  the  military  Routei  and  Pottt. — Fort  Pitt. — 
Fort  Burd, — Isolated  Condition  of  the  Illinois  Settlements. — Advance  of  white  Set- 
tlements upon  the  Sources  of  the  Susquehanna,  Yonghioyeny,  and  Monongaliela , 
also  upon  New  Rirer  and  Qreenbrier,  Clinch  and  Holston. — Indian  Territory  on  the 
Susquehanna,  Alleghany,  and  Cheat  Rivers. — Frontier  Settlements  of  Virginia  in 
1766.— Emigration  to  the  Monongahela  in  1767. — Redstone  Fort  a  garrisoned  Post.— 
Increase  of  Emigration  in  1768. — Settlements  extend  to  the  Sources  of  the  two  Ken- 
hawas. — The  colonial  System  of  granting  Lands  cast  of  the  Ohio. — The  Indiana  be 
come  impatient  of  the  white  Man's  Advance. — Mode  of  conciliating  Indians  for  tlieir 
Lands. — Remonstrance  of  the  Six  Nations  to  the  King's  "  Indian  Agent." — The  Sub- 
ject of  their  Complaint  laid  before  the  provincial  Legislature.— Treaties  with  nortli 
em  and  southern  Indiana  ordered  by  royal  Government. — "Treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix." 
—The  "  Mississippi  Company"  of  Virginia,  1769.—"  Treaty  of  HardLabor"  with  Cher 
okees. — Extensive  Claims  to  Territory  set  up  by  the  English  under  the  "  Treaty  of 
Fort  Stanwix"  with  the  Six  Nations. — Settlements  advance  to  the  Holston  and 
Clinch  Rivers. — Impatience  of  northern  and  southern  Indians  at  the  Advance  of  the 
Whites. — Explorations  of  Dr.  Walker  west  of  Cumberland  Mountains,  in  1766  ;  of 
Finley,  in  1769  ;  of  Colonel  Knox. — "  Long-Hunters." — Western  Emigration  encoor 
aged  by  royal  colonial  Qovemments. — Emigration  to  Holston,  Clinch,  and  to  West 
Florida,  in  1770. — Fort  Pitt  a  garrisoned  Post.— Settlements  at  Redstone  Fort,  on 
Ohio,  at  Wheelii.  t,  and  other  Points,  in  1770. — Enthusiasm  of  eastern  Settlements 
for  western  Emigration. — Territory  claimed  by  Virginia.— Emigrants  from  Nortli 
Carolina  advance  upop  the  Sources  of  Holston  River. — Impaticuco  of  the  Chcrokces. 
— "  Treaty  of  Lochaber." — New  boundary  Line.— The  four  hundred  acre  Settlement 
Act  of  Virginia,  passed  in  177U. — "  District  of  West  Augusta"  organized. — Cresap's 
Settlement  at  Redstone  "Old  Fort,"  in  1771.— Provisions  fail  — The  "Starving 
Year"  of  1773. — Settlements  on  the  Ohio  above  the  Kenhawa. — Route  from  eastern 
Settlements  to  the  Ohio. — Manner  of  traveling. — Emigration  to  the  West  increases 
greatly  in  1773.— To  Western  Virginia.— To  "  Western  District"  of  North  Carolina 
— To  West  Florida. — Numerous  Surveyors  sent  out  to  Kentucky. — Thomas  Bullitt, 
Hancock  Taylor,  M'Afee. — Surveys  near  Frankfort,  Harrodsburg,  and  Danville. — 
Captain  Bullitt  at  the  Falls  of  Ohio. — Settlements  on  the  Holston,  East  Tennessee. — 
Daniel  Boone  attempts  to  introduce  white  Families  from  North  Carolina. — Driven 
back  by  Indians. — Emigration  in  1774  to  tlie  Upper  Ohio ;  on  the  Monongahela, 
Kenhawa,  and  Kentucky  Regions. — Simon  Kenton  at  May's  Lick.— James  Harrod  at 
Harrodsburg. — West  Augusta  in  1774. — Outrages  of  lawless  white  Men  provoke  In 
dian  Vengeance. — Wheeling  Fort  built. — Fort  Fincaatlo. — Dr.  Connolly  Command- 
ant of  West  Augusta. 

[A.D.  1765.]     No  sooner  had  peace  with  the  northwestern 
Indians  been  established,  than  the  restless  population  of  the 


S44 


IIIflTORY    OF    TIIR 


[BOt)K    III. 


provinces  be^an  to  move  forward  to  t'«e  western  side  of  the 
mountuins.  Settlements  soon  began  to  spring  up  around  the 
military  posts  and  upon  tlie  roads  leading  to  these  remote 
points.  The  garrisons  were  in  the  receipt  of  their  monthly 
pay,  which  they  drew  only  to  expend ;  and  those  who  could 
most  contribute  to  the  wants  and  comforts  of  the  troops  were 
Bure  to  receive  their  money.  A  few  months  of  peace  and  se- 
curity served  to  produce  the  germs  of  trading  and  manufacture 
ing  towns  near  the  military  posts ;  and  agricultural  pursuits 
became  indispensable  to  their  subsistence  and  comfort.  The 
garrisons,  no  less  than  the  frontier  villagers,  required  the  aid 
of  the  various  mechanical  trades  adapted  to  new  settlements, 
as  well  as  the  more  indispensable  articles  of  grain  and  culinary 
vegetables,  with  the  flesh  of  domestic  animals,  and  milk.  Hence 
the  husbandman  derived  employment  and  profit  by  a  residence 
near  the  remote  posts.  The  route  to  each,  from  the  old  set- 
tlements, was  traveled  by  troops  and  caravans  with  supplies, 
conducted  by  government  agents,  and  followed  by  hundreds 
of  adventurers  who  were  anxious  to  explore  the  beautiful  and 
fertile  regions  of  the  Ohio  and  its  great  tributaries.  This  gave 
occasion  for  taverns,  or  public  houses,  on  the  road  ;  and  to  su|)- 
port  these  in  a  manner  adequate  to  the  demands  of  the  increas- 
ing intercourse,  farms  were  opened,  mills  were  erected,  and 
mechanics  were  employed.  Hence  settlements  were  gradu- 
ally formed  along  the  main  routes  which  led  from  the  eastern 
settlements  westward  through  the  wilderness.  At  first  they 
were  at  distances  for  a  day's  journey ;  but  these  distances  were 
soon  divided,  and  *'  half-way  houses"  sprung  up  at  the  distance 
of  half  a  day's  travel ;  these  distances  were  again  reduced  by 
intermediate  houses,  which  enabled  the  emigrant  and  traveler 
to  consult  his  ease  and  convenience  in  making  his  journey. 
The  increasing  spirit  for  western  emigration  from  the  Atlantic 
provinces  soon  brought  crowds  of  families  and  adventurers 
from  the  sandy  shores  of  Delaware  and  Maryland,  to  seek  ease 
and  competence  upon  the  fertile  valleys  and  bottoms  west  of 
the  mountains.  The  intelligent  and  virtuous,  reared  in  ease 
and  competence,  allured  by  the  glowing  descriptions  of  the  fer- 
tile West,  sought  to  better  their  condition  in  a  new  region ;  the 
profligate  and  vicious,  impatient  of  the  wholesome  restraints  of 
Jaw  and  good  government,  also  sought  the  remote  population 
where  those  restraints  are  unknown. 


A.O.   17(U).]  VALLKV    OP   TIIK    Mli*Hlti.4||>ri. 


315 


[A. I).  1700.]  Thus,  in  fi  lew  years  after  the  close  of  Ponti- 
nc's  war,  small  settlements  had  extended  npon  nil  the  ^reat 
routes  to  the  west;  those  from  the  north  conver^'in«(  to  Fort 
Pitt,  and  those  from  the  south  leadin;^  to  the  head  wafers  of  the 
Ilolston  and  Clinch  Rivers.  Already  a  town  had  heen  laid 
out  on  the  east  hank  of  the  Monon^ahola,  within  two  hundred 
yards  of  F(M*t  Pitt,  upon  the  site  of  a  village  which  ha<l  heen 
destroyed  two  years  before  hy  the  hostile  savages.*  A  route 
had  been  »»pened  to  the  Monongahola,  in  the  vi<;inity  ()f  "Red- 
stone Old  Fort,"  near  the  mouth  of  Dunlap's  Oeek,  seventy 
miles  above  Fort  Pitt.  This  point  was  soon  to  become  an  im- 
portant place  of  embarkation  for  emigrants  from  the  Atlantic 
seaboard,  in  their  advance  to  the  Ohio  Uiver  and  the  western 
country  generally.f 

These  were  tlve  extreme  frontier  settlements  of  the  British 
provinces  in  this  quarter.  Beyond  them,  and  more  than  a 
thousand  miles  in  advance  of  any  organized  coIf)niaI  govern- 
ment, were  the  isolated  settlements  on  the  Wabash  and  Illinois 
Rivers,  comprising  a  few  poor  and  ignorant  French  colonies. 
They  had  fallen  under  the  dominion  of  the  English  crown,  but 
they  were  not  regarded  as  a  i)art  t>f  the  English  settlements. 
They  formed  only  small  detached  military  colonies,  speaking  a 
foreign  language,  and  having  little  or  no  intercourse  with  the 
restless  emigrants  which  were  now  crowding  toward  the  Ohio. 
Hence  they  were  visited  only  occasionally  by  officers  or  agents 
of  the  government,  or  by  Indian  traders  and  adventurers,  to 
gratify  a  thirst  for  pecuniary  gain,  or  an  innate  desire  for  dis- 
tant rambles.J 

*  Suo  Iiulny'a  America,  Luml.  cd.,  1797,  p.  4 IH.  This  i»  quite  a  largo  nnd  valuable 
work  uiKin  the  early  history',  lottluiuetits,  ami  statiHtica  uf  the  westeni  country,  up  to 
the  year  178C,  by  Mujor  Imlay,  furmorly  ait  uiHcer  iu  the  Uritiih  service.  Ho  made  the 
tniu*  of  the  western  country  about  the  year  1780,  and  coUccteil  and  arranged  such 
sketi^hes  uf  the  westoni  country  und  statistics  as  were  accessible  at  that  perioil. 

t  See  American  Pioneer,  vol.  ii.,  p,  59-62. 

t  Except  the  i  nninuindants  sent  to  these  posts,  probably  the  first  regular  British 
Agent  sent  to  these  remote  settlements  was  Colonel  George  Croghan,  by  way  of  Foit 
Pitt  aud  the  Ohio  River,  in  the  siunmcr  of  lliio.  Accompanied  by  a  party  of  English 
Huidiors,  and  do]>uties  from  the  Shawancso,  Dclawares,  and  Senccas,  and  a  party  of 
friendly  Indiana,  he  set  out  in  boats  from  Fort  Pitt  on  the  15th  of  May,  U[K)n  a  mission 
to  tlie  western  tribes,  fur  the  purpose  of  opening  a  friendly  intercourse  and  trade  with 
them,  and  to  take  observations  of  the  country  and  the  tribes  inhabiting  the  western  re- 
gions. The  party  coasted  slowly  down  the  Ohio,  and  on  the  33d  of  May  they  encamped 
ut  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto,  where  they  remained  several  (lays,  awaiting  the  arrival  of 
several  French  traders  whose  attendance  at  this  point  waa  expected.  On  the  :iOth 
they  descended  to  the  mouth  of  Licking  River,  and  on  the  31st  they  visited  the  Dig- 
bone  Lick,  on  the  south  side  of  the  Ohio;  here  they  witnessed  the  wide  beaten  roads 


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346 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


Settlements  were  now  advancing  rapidly  from  eastern  por- 
tions of  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia,  and  emigrants 
were  pressing  forward  upon  the  upper  tributaries  of  the  Mo- 
nongahela,  upon  the  Youghiogeny  or  "  Yough,"  and  upon  the 
great  branches  of  Cheat  River.  On  the  south,  the  frontier 
counties  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  were  pouring  forth 
their  hardy  pioneers,  who  were  still  advancing,  and  already 
settling  the  fertile  regions  upon  the  head  waters  of  New  River, 
west  of  the  mountains,  as  well  as  upon  the  sources  of  the  Green- 
brier. Others,  full  of  enterprise  and  love  of  western  adventure, 
were  exploring  the  country, drained  by  the  great  branches  of 
Clinch  River,  and  were  forming  remote,  isolated  settlements  in 
Powell's  Valley,  still  further  north  and  west,  and  also  upon  the 
waters  of  the  North  Fork  of  Holston,  in  the  regions  near  the 
present  towns  of  Abington  and  Wy theville. 

At  this  time  the  principal  sources  of  the  Susquehanna  in  New 
York  and  in  Pennsylvania,  as  well  as  the  whole  region  drained 
by  the  Alleghany  River  and  its  tributaries,  were  deep  Indian 
solitudes,  wholly  in  possession  of  the  native  tribes,  and  rarely 
frequented  by  the  most  advanced  pioneer.     A  large  portion 


leading  from  the  lick  to  the  upper  portion  of  Licking  River,  made  by  the  herds  of  buf- 
falo which  then  frequented  the  country.  On  the  first  of  June  they  were  at  the  "  falls 
of  the  Ohio ;"  on  the  6th  of  June  they  Utrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash.  Here  they 
found  a  breast-work,  supposed  tq.  have  been  erected  by  the  Indians.  Six  miles  further, 
they  encamped  at  a  place  called  the  "  Old  Shawanese  Village,"  upon  or  near  the  present 
site  of  Shawneetown,  which  perpetuates  its  name.  At  this  place  they  remained  six 
days.for  the  purpose  of  opening  a  friendly  intercourse  and  trade  with  the  Wabash  tribes ; 
and  while  here.  Colonel  Croghan  sent  messengers  with  dispatches  for  Lord  Frazer, 
who  had  gone  from  Fort  Pitt  as  commandant  at  Fort  Chartres,  and  also  to  M.  St.  Ang^, 
the  former  French  commandant  at  that  place. 

On  the  6th  of  June,  at  daybreak,  they  were  attacked  by  a  party  of  eighty  warriors, 
chiefly  Kickapoos  and  Musquatamies,  by  whom  several  of  the  party  were  killed,  and 
nearly  all  of  the  remainder  wounded.  Besides,  they  were  plundered  of  all  their  cloth- 
ing, provisions,  goods,  and  money.  From  this  point  they  set  out  for  Vincennes  by  land ; 
and,  passing  through  wooded  hills  and  uplands,  and  wide-spreading  prairies,  they  ar- 
rived at  the  post  of  St.  Vincent  on  the  9th  of  June.  Here  they  found  eighty  or  ninety 
French  families  settled  upon  the  east  bank  of  the  river,  where  they  tarried  several  days. 
From  St.  Vincent  they  proceeded  by  land  up  the  Wabash  for  210  miles  to  Ouiatenon. 
the  upper  French  settlement,  which  was  also  protected  by  a  small  fort.  The  settle- 
ment at  this  place  comprised  about  fourteen  families.  They  ariived  at  this  post  on 
the  23d  of  June,  and  remained  some  days,  forming  amicable  relations  and  instituting 
commercial  arrangements.  From  this  point  they  set  out  for  the  region  of  the  Maumee, 
and  passing  over  the  dividing  ridges  between  the  head-streams  of  the  Wabash  and  the 
Maumee,  they  descended  the  latter  stream  to  the  lake.  After  some  delay  on  the  shores 
of  Lake  Erie,  they  set  out  by  water  to  Detroit,  where  they  arrived  on  the  17th  of  Au- 
gust. Detroit  then  was  a  large  stockaded  village,  containing  about  eighty  houses  of 
all  kinds. — For  a  copy  of  Croghan's  Journal,  see  Butler's  Kentucky,  second  edition, 
Appendix,  459-471. 


A.D.  1767.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


347 


of  the  regions  lying  upon  the  Cheat  and  Monongahela  Rivers 
was  still  in  possession  of  the  Indians,  and  had  never  been  re- 
linquished by  treaty,  although  the  impatient  Anglo-Americans 
were  already  crowding  them  from  its  beautiful  valleys  and  ro- 
mantic hills. 

In  Virginia,  the  counties  of  Rockbridge,  Augusta,  Greenbrier, 
and  Frederic,  lying  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  were  fi'ontier  re- 
gions, occupied  by  a  sparse  population,  exposed  to  the  dangers 
of  savage  massacre  upon  any  sudden  outbreak  of  Indian  ven- 
geance ;  the  towns  of  Staunton,  Lexington,  and  Winchester 
were  remote  frontier  trading-posts,  inhabited  by  a  few  pioneers, 
who  formed  a  connecting  link  between  the  Indians  and  the 
eastern  people  of  Virginia.  Not  ten  years  before,  Winchester 
had  been  an  extreme  frontier  stockade  post,  erected  for  the  pro- 
tection of  a  few  wretched  families  who  were  crowded  into  it, 
and  were  in  daily  apprehension  of  Indian  massacre.*  Staunton 
had  been  first  laid  off  as  a  town  in  the  year  1761,  and  was  still 
a  frontier  village ;  Cumberland,  in  Maryland,  also  was  a  fron- 
tier military  post,  more  than  sixty  miles  in  advance  of  the  old 
settlements  near  Hagerstown,  and  fifty  miles  in  the  rear  of  the 
settlements  which  were  then  advancing  upon  the  sources  of 
the  Youghiogeny  and  Cheat  Rivers. 

[A.D.  1767.]  The  following  year  witnessed  a  gradual  ad- 
vance of  settlements  down  the  valleys  of  the  Youghiogeny  and 
Cheat  Rivers,  and  upon  the  Monongahela  itself.  This  region 
soon  became  a  focus  of  emigration  from  Maryland,  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  Northern  Virginia ;  and  the  fine  undulating  bottoms 
and  rolling  intervals,  with  their  limpid  streams,  leaping  along 
over  rocky  bottoms,  figured  in  the  narratives  of  those  who  re- 
turned to  visit  their  eastern  friends,  until  all  were  filled  with 
the  bright  visions  of  future  wealth  which  seemed  to  open  to 
their  excited  fancy.  The  intelligent,  the  enterprising,  and  the 
young  were  foremost  in  the  throng  which  eagerly  looked  be- 
yond the  mountains  for  wealth  and  happiness,  and  the  old  and 
sedate  could  not  remain  behind  their  children  and  friends. 

To  protect  the  growing  settlements,  and  check  their  impatient 
advances,  as  much  as  to  observe  the  disposition  and  movements 
of  the  jealous  savages,  a  small  military  post  had  been  erected 
at  Redstone  Old  Fort,  and  was  still  occupied  by  a  suitable  gar 
rison.f     The  Indians  looked  with  a  jealous  eye  upon  the  ad- 


•  Sparks'g  Writings  of  Washington,  vol.  ii.,  p.  151,  161 ;  vol.  xxiv.,  241-250. 
t  See  Butler'a  Histoty  of  Kentucky,  second  edition,  p.  48,  Introduction. 


348 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


Vance  of  the  countless  immigrants,  no  less  than  the  formation 
of  new  settlements  and  stockades  in  the  heart  of  their  territory, 
which  they  had  never  relinquished  formally  to  the  white  man. 

Still  the  tide  of  emigration  continued  to  move  to  the  West, 
and  settlements  began  to  multiply  upon  the  lower  tributaries 
of  the  Monongahela,  while  others  were  busily  engaged  in  ex- 
ploring other  regions  for  the  location  of  future  settlements,  to 
be  taken  up  subsequently  by  military  warrants,  by  special 
grants,  and  by  right  of  settlement  or  first  occupancy. 

[A.D.  1768.]  With  the  approbation  of  the  British  crown, 
the  provincial  government  had  issued  script  and  military  war- 
rants without  number  since  the  close  of  Pontiac's  war,  besides 
many  extensive  claims  anterior  to  that  period.  All  these  were 
to  be  located  upon  the  waters  of  the  Ohio,  within  the  region 
claimed  to  be  within  the  chartered  limits  of  Virginia  and  Penn- 
sylvania, and  hundreds  of  surveyors  and  agents  were  constant- 
ly employed  in  exploring,  selecting,  and  locating  for  the  re- 
spective claimants.  Some  grants  had  been  made  before  the 
French  war,  and  hundreds  of  military  warrants  had  been  is- 
sued before  the  French  troops  retired  from  Fort  Duquesne. 
In  none  of  the  provinces  had  the  infatuation  for  western  lands 
been  carried  to  a  greater  extent  than  in  the  province  of  Vir- 
ginia. In  a  report  made  to  the  executive  council  of  Virginia 
in  1757,  by  John  Blair,  secretary  of  the  council,  he  states,  the 
quantity  of  lands  then  entered  to  companies  and  individuals, 
as  indicated  by  the  records,  amounted  to  three  millions  of  acreSf 
a  large  portion  of  which  had  been  granted  as  early  as  the  year 
1754.*  Subsequent  to  the  treaty  of  German  Flats,  in  1764,  the 
number  of  grants  and  land-warrants  issued  by  the  colonial  au- 
thorities multiplied  astonishingly. , 

It  is  impossible  to  form  a  correct  estimate  of  the  land  mania 
which  seemed  to  pervade  the  middle  colonies,  from  the  com- 
mencement of  the  first  explorations  on  the  Ohio  until  the  be- 
ginning of  Lord  Dunmore's  war  in  1774.  The  province  of 
Virginia  invariably  took  the  lead  in  all  movements  for  the  oc- 
cupancy of  the  western  lands.  As  early  as  1744,  two  com- 
missioners from  Virginia,  Colonel  Thomas  Lee  and  Colonel 
William  Beverly,  with  others  from  Pennsylvania  and  Mary- 
land, convened  a  portion  of  the  Six  Nations  at  Lancaster,  Penn- 
sylvania, for  the  purpose  of  treating  with  them  for  the  sale  and 

'     *  See  North  American  Review,  No.  104,  for  July,  1639,  p.  100. 


A.D.  1768.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MIdSISSTPPl. 


349 


relinquishment  of  large  bodies  of  land  extending  west  of  the 
settlements  in  the  three  provinces,  from  the  Susquehanna  to 
the  Potomac.  After  a  liberal  use  of  whisky-punch,  "  bumbo," 
and  wine,  of  which  the  Indians  partook  freely,  the  treaty  was 
duly  read  and  signed  by  the  parties  respectively.  The  amount 
paid  the  Indians  for  signing  this  treaty  was  two  hundred  and 
twenty  pounds  on  the  part  of  Maryland,  and  two  hundred 
pounds  on  the  part  of  Virginia,  both  in  Pennsylvania  currency, 
besides  sundry  presents,  and  abundance  of  whisky-j,  .uxh  and 
♦♦  bumbo." 

When  it  was  afterward  ascertained  that  the  Indians  charged 
fraud  in  the  treaty,  and  denied  the  relinquishment  of  the  extens- 
ive regions  claimed  by  the  provinces  in  virtue  of  its  stipula- 
tions, an  effort  was  made  to  reconcile  and  appease  the  indig- 
nation of  the  savages  by  means  of  a  subsequent  treaty.  For 
this  purpose,  three  commissioners  from  Virginia,  Colonels  Fry, 
Lomax,  and  Patton,  with  others  from  the  other  two  provinces, 
repaired  to  "  Logstown,"  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Ohio,  sev- 
enteen miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Monongahela.  The  few 
Indians  who  attended  this  treaty,  and  others  subsequently  held 
at  Winchester  and  other  places,  indignantly  refused  to  ratify 
the  treaty  of  Lancaster,  although  urged  thereto  by  earnest  en- 
treaties, supported  by  the  promise  of  money,  and  many  valua- 
ble presents  and  trinkets  for  Indian  use. 

In  all  these  treaties,  whether  ratified  or  rejected,  the  Virgin- 
ians appear  to  have  been  determined  to  coerce  a  relinquish- 
ment of  the  Indian  lands,  either  by  fair  means  or  foul,  and  no 
efibrt  of  negotiation  or  intrigue  was  omitted  to  accomplish  this 
purpose. 

Notwithstanding  the  Indian  title  had  not  been  extinguished 
to  the  lands  which  were  already  occupied  by  settlements,  which 
were  gradually  extending  over  them,  the  tide  of  emigration 
still  flowed  into  the  West,  and  parties  of  woodsmen,  explorers, 
and  surveyors  were  distributed  over  the  whole  country  east  of 
the  upper  portion  of  the  Ohio.  Regardless  of  the  Indians'  rights, 
and  deaf  to  their  remonstrances,  the  settlements  and  explora- 
tions continued  to  advance.  Occasionally,  lawless  men  com- 
mitted outrages  upon  the  persons  and  property  of  the  Indians, 
and  thereby  provoked  the  tribes  generally  to  unite  and  assert 
their  rights,  as  the  common  cause  of  the  whole  confederacy. 
Beyond  the  restraints  of  law,  the  evil  propensities  of  disor- 


350 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  lit. 


derly  men  were  virtually  encouraged  to  indulge  in  additional 
encroachments  upon  the  unprotected  Indians.  Outrages  upon 
their  persons  and  property  in  these  remote  regions  consequent- 
ly became  more  frequent. 

The  Indians,  finding  themselves  without  recourse  or  appeal 
to  any  tribunal,  at  length  became  impatient  and  exasperated  at 
the  repeated  aggressions  of  lawless  white  men.  They  had  ex- 
pressed their  dissatisfaction  in  no  measured  terms,  and  evinced 
a  strong  inclination  to  resist  the  encroachment  of  the  whites 
by  a  resort  to  arms,  as  the  certain  mode  of  enforcing  respect 
to  their  demands  and  to  their  rights.  Heretofore  they  had  re- 
peatedly remonstrated  to  the  agents  of  the  British  crown  spe- 
cially charged  with  the  Indian  affairs,  and  to  the  command- 
ants of  the  western  posts ;  but  their  representations  had  been 
disregarded,  and  their  injuries  unredressed,  until  self-preserva 
tion  and  revenge  began  to  rouse  them  from  their  temporary 
slumber. 

By  the  opening  of  the  spring  of  1768,  the  Indians  along  the 
whole  line  of  the  western  frontier,  from  the  sources  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna to  those  of  the  Tennessee,  became  exasperated,  and 
united  in  their  determination  to  check  further  encroachments, 
and  to  enforce  an  observance  of  their  rights.  Still  they  re- 
frained from  open  hostilities,  while  the  restless  population  of 
the  Atlantic  border  continued  to  press  forward  into  the  Ohio 
country,  regardless  alike  of  the  rights  of  the  Indians  and  the 
proclamation  of  the  king,*  issued  five  years  previously. 

At  length,  on  the  6th  of  May,  a  deputation  of  the  "  Six  Na- 
tions" presented  to  the  "  deputy  superintendent  of  Indian  af- 
fairs" at  Fort  Pitt  a  formal  remonstrance  against  the  contin- 
ued encroachments  of  the  whites  upon  lands  which  of  right,  and 
without  doubt,  belonged  to  the  Indians.  That  officer  with 
promptness  forwarded  the  remonstrance  to  the  colonial  gov- 
ernment, and  the  whole  subject  was  laid  before  the  royal  gov- 
ernment without  delay.  On  the  31st  of  May,  the  president  of 
the  king's  council  of  Virginia  brought  the  subject  before  the  rep- 
resentatives of  the  province  for  their  immediate  action,  as  one 
which  endangered  the  peace  and  security  of  the  colony. 

In  his  communication  to  the  colonial  Legislature,  he  informed 
them  "  That  a  set  of  men,  regardless  of  the  laws  of  natural  jus- 

*  This  refers  to  the  proclamation  of  ]  763,  prohibiting  gettlementi  beyond  the  sources 
of  the  Atlantic  streams,  and  which  was  still  in  force. 


A.D.  1708.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


351 


one 


jus- 


lurces 


tice,  unmindful  of  the  duties  they  owe  to  society,  and  in  con- 
tempt of  the  royal  proclamations,  have  dared  to  settle  themselves 
upon  the  lands  near  Redstone  Creek  and  Cheat  River,  which 
arc  the  property  of  the  Indians ;  and  notwithstanding  the  repeat- 
ed warnings  of  the  danger  of  such  lawless  proceedings,  and  the 
strict  and  spirited  injunctions  to  desist  and  quit  their  unjust 
possessions,  they  still  remain  unmoved,  and  seem  to  defy  the 
orders,  and  even  the  powers  of  the  government."* 
.  The  authority  of  the  colonial  government  was  exerted  to 
quiet  the  jealous  apprehensions  of  the  Indians,  and  to  restrain 
further  acts  of  aggression  on  the  part  of  the  frontier  people,  un- 
til the  royal  government  should  act  in  the  matter. 

At  length,  the  subject  having  been  duly  considered  by  the 
royal  government,  orders  were  issued  near  the  close  of  sum- 
mer to  Sir  William  Johnson,  "  superintendent  of  Northern  In- 
dian affairs,"  instructing  him  to  call  together  the  chiefs,  war- 
riors, and  sachems  of  the  tribes  more  especially  interested,  for 
the  purpose  of  purchasing  from  them  the  lands  already  occu- 
pied by  the  king's  subjects. 

Agreeably  to  these  instructions.  Sir  William  Johnson  con- 
vened the  delegates  of  the  Six  Nations  and  their  confederates 
at  Fort  Stanwix,f  where  a  treaty  of  peace  and  relinquishment 
of  lands  was  concluded  in  the  month  of  November  following. 
By  this  treaty,  as  the  English  allege,  for  and  in  consideration 
of  certain  goods  of  divers  kinds,  and  other  valuable  presents  to 
them  paid,  the  Indians  did  relinquish  to  the  king  large  bodies 
of  land  in  the  provinces  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  extend- 
ing from  the  Alleghany  Mountains  westward  to  the  Ohio  Riv- 
er, and  thence  westward,  on  the  south  side  of  the  same,  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Cherokee  or  Tennessee  River.  This  construction 
of  the  treaty  was  firmly  resisted  by  the  Indians,  as  being  a  fraud 
upon  them. 

At  the  same  time,  John  Stewart,  Esq.,  "  superintendent  of 
Southern  Indian  affairs,"  had  received  instructions  to  assemble 
the  Southern  Indians  in  like  manner,  for  the  purpose  of  estab- 
lishing a  boundary  line  between  them  and  the  whites.  He  ac- 
cordingly concluded  a  treaty  with  the  Cherokees  at "  Hard  La- 
bor," in  South  Carolina,  on  the  14th  day  of  October.     By  this 

*  See  Butler's  Kentucky,  Appendix,  p.  475. 

t  Fort  Stanwix  occupied  tlie  site  of  tlie  present  town  of  Utica,  formerly  Fort  Schuy- 
ler, in  Oneida  county,  New  York,  high  up  the  Mohawk  River.  See  American  Pioneer, 
vol.  ii.,  p.  391. 


352 


HIciTORY    OF    TUG 


[UOOK  III. 


treaty,  the  Cherokees  agreed  that  the  southwestern  boundary 
of  Virginia  should  be  aline  "extending  from  the  point  where  the 
northern  line  of  North  Carolina  intersects  the  Cherokee  hunt- 
ing-grounds, about  thirty-six  miles  east  of  Long  Island,  in  the 
Holston  Iliver,  and  thence  extending  in  a  direct  course,  north 
by  east,  to  Chiswell's  Mine,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Kenhawa 
River,  and  thence  down  that  stream  to  its  junction  with  the 
Ohio  River." 

[A.D.  1769.]  This  line,  however,  did  not  include  all  the  set- 
tlements then  existing  within  the  present  limits  of  the  State  of 
Virginia.  Those  formed  northwest  of  the  Holston,  and  upon 
the  branches  of  Clinch  and  Powell's  Rivers,  were  still  within 
the  limits  of  the  Indian  territory.  This  fact  being  ascertained, 
a  subsequent  treaty  became  necessary  for  the  adjustment  of  a 
new  boundary,  and  the  remuneration  of  the  savages  for  an  ad- 
ditional extent  of  country. 

A  large  portion  of  the  lands  south  of  the  Ohio,  claimed  by  the 
English  in  virtue  of  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix,  were,  in  fact, 
lands  to  which  the  Six  Nations  had  no  exclusive  claim,  they 
being  the  "  common  hunting-grounds"  of  the  Cherokees  and 
Chickasas  also.  Yet  the  Ohio  River  was  urged  as  the  proper 
boundary  between  the  white  settlements  and  the  Indians  on  the 
west,  and  the  latter  were  finally  compelled  to  acquiesce  in  the 
English  construction  of  the  limits.* 

Yet,  at  the  time  of  the  treaty  at  Fort  Stanwix,  the  Indians 
never  intended  to  relinquish  all  the  lands  between  the  mount- 
ains and  the  Ohio  River.  They  were  compelled  first  to  admit 
the  English  construction,  and  afterward  to  plead  it  against 
further  encroachments.  The  Cherokees  had  been  peaceable 
and  friendly  since  the  close  of  the  French  war ;  but  the  west- 
ern people  of  North  Carolina  and  Virginia  were  again  begin- 
ning to  encroach  upon  them.f  Settlements  were  advancing 
upon  the  sources  of  the  Holston  and  Clinch  Rivers,  and  upon 
the  waters  of  Powell's  River,  east  of  the  Cumberland  Mount- 
ains, and  beyond  the  established  boundary.  Although  the 
Cherokees  refrained  from  open  war,  yet  they  looked  with  a 
jealous  eye  upon  the  advances  which  the  white  population 
were  now  beginning  to  make  upon  the  waters  flowing  west- 
ward. 

The  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix  had  quieted  apprehension  on 

*  Butler's  Keatucky,  Introduction,  p.  50-53.  t  Idem,  p.  49. 


-.A^ 


A.D.  1769.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISSirPL 


353 


account  of  Indian  hostility  in  the  north,  at  the  same  time  it  had 
given  a  new  impulse  to  the  spirit  of  emigration  and  explora- 
tion westward.  The  Indian  title  was  claimed  to  have  been 
extinguished  to  all  lands  east  and  south  of  the  Ohio  to  an  in- 
definite extent.  Fame  had  represented  the  country  west  of 
the  Cumberland  Mountains  as  one  of  boundless  fertility  and  in- 
conceivable beauty;  yet  it  was  three  hundred  miles  in  advance 
of  the  most  remote  frontier  settlements,  and  was  claimed  as 
the  common  hunting-grounds  of  the  Northern  and  Soutiiern 
Indians.  That  portion  of  Kentucky  between  the  Kentucky 
and  Cumberland  Rivers  could  not  be  claimed  under  any  treaty ; 
it  was  the  undisputed  territory  of  the  native  tribes,  and  was 
claimed  exclusively  by  the  Cherokees  and  Chickasfts  as  their 
common  hunting-ground.  As  both  these  tribes  were  power- 
ful and  warlike,  they  had  excluded  the  white  man's  advance 
from  this  region ;  yet  there  were  men  of  fearless  spirit  and 
hardy  enterprise  in  the  western  settlements  of  North  Carolina 


and  Virginia,  who  were 


willing  to 


tempt  the  dangerous 


wilds,"  and  to  explore  the  enchanted  plains  of  Kentucky. 
Still  the  "garden  of  Kentucky"  was  unknown  to  the  white 
man,  or  known  only  by  rumor ;  one  Englishman  only  had  seen 
the  matchless  country. 

But  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix  having  revived  the  spirit  of 
western  emigration  in  a  tenfold  degree,  explorers  fearlessly 
penetrated  this  most  remote  district.  The  whole  system  of 
land  speculation  received  a  new  impulse ;  new  companies  were 
formed  on  the  most  magnificent  scale,  and  persons  of  all  ranks 
and  conditions  embarked  in  the  enterprise  of  a  land  crusade  to 
the  West.  Companies  were  formed,  and  sent  their  united  pe- 
titions to  the  king,  prayin.'!  lor  enormous  grants,  scarcely  infe- 
rior to  the  early  colonial  cii'.riers.  Among  these  was  the  first 
Anglo-American  "  Mississippi  Company,"  formed  and  conduct- 
ed chiefly  by  Francis  Ligiitfoot  Lee,  Richard  Henry  Lee, 
George  Washington,  and  Arthur  Lee,  all  wealthy  Virginians, 
besides  nearly  fifty  other  petitioners,  who  were  to  be  joint 
stockholders  in  the  contemplated  grant.  The  grant  required 
in  this  petition  was  no  less  than  two  and  a  half  millions  of 
acres,  to  be  located  upon  the  waters  of  the  Ohio.*  Arthur 
Lee,  as  special  agent  for  the  company,  in  December  repaired 

*  Butlers  Kentucky.— See  Appendix,  p.  175-177,  for  a  copy  of  this  petition  and 
nanics. 

Vol.  I.— Z 


854 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  III. 


with  all  haste  to  London,  to  luy  the  memorial  and  petition  be> 
fore  the  ministers ;  but  finally,  alter  great  efforts  and  protract- 
ed delays,  the  company  failed  in  their  object.  Yet  Colonel 
George  Washington,  with  his  faithful  and  indefatigable  agent 
and  pnncipal  surveyor,  Major  William  Crawford,  were  eager- 
ly engaged,  with  hundreds  of  other  claimants,  in  locating  for- 
mer grants  and  military  warrants,  until  Indian  hostilities  again 
checked  their  operations. 

About  this  time  the  first  adventurers  from  North  Carolina 
and  Southern  Virginia  began  to  explore  the  valleys  and  plains 
northwest  of  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  within  the  southern 
limits  of  the  present  State  of  Kentucky.  During  the  summer 
of  1768,  the  fearless  John  Finley,  an  Indian  trader  from  North 
Carolina,  had  pursued  the  route  of  Dr.  Walker  by  way  of  Cum- 
berland Gap,  and  had  penetrated  as  far  north  and  west  as  the 
Kentucky  River.  Here,  on  an  eminence  near  the  mouth  of  a 
tributary  called  Red  River,  he  had  erected  a  hut  and  opened 
a  friendly  intercourse  with  the  Indians.  He  had  also  explored 
some  of  the  beautiful  plains  of  Kentucky,  which  he  described 
in  glowing  colors  to  Daniel  Boone,  a  hunter  and  woodsman 
settled  upon  the  Yadkin  River.  In  the  fall  of  1769,  he  return- 
ed to  his  former  post,  with  Daniel  Boone  and  John  Stewart, 
accompanied  by  a  party  of  hunters,  who  followed  him  as  their 
guide,  upon  a  hunting  excursion.  They  pursued  their  route 
by  way  of  the  Holston  River  and  Cumberland  Gap,  crossed 
Cumberland  River  near  the  mountains,  and  penetrated  as  far 
as  Finley's  trading-post,  within  the  present  limits  of  Clarke 
county,  in  the  State  of  Kentucky.  Here,  from  a  lofty  eminence 
on  the  north  side  of  the  Kentucky  River,  Daniel  Boone  first  be- 
held "  the  beautiful  level  of  Kentucky."  The  plains  and  for- 
ests abounded  with  wild  beasts  of  every  kind  ;  deer  and  elks 
were  common ;  the  buffalo  was  seen  in  herds  ;  and  the  plains 
were  covered  with  the  "  richest  verdure." 

[A.D.  1770.]  Stewart  left  his  bones  in  Kentucky,  the  first 
victim  of  Indian  resentment  to  the  white  man's  advance  into 
"  the  dark  and  bloody  ground."  Finley  and  Boone  returned 
to  the  banks  of  the  Yadkin.  Their  friends  and  neighbors  were 
enraptured  with  the  glowing  descriptions  given  of  the  delight- 
ful country  which  they  had  discovered,  and  their  imaginations 
were  inflamed  with  the  wonderful  products  which  were  yield- 
ed in  such  bountiful  profusion.    The  sterile  hills  and  rocky 


A.D.  1770.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MIBfllBSim. 


355 


mountains  of  North  Carolina  began  to  lose  their  interest  when 
compared  with  the  fertile  plains  of  Kentucky. 

Nor  did  the  southern  portion  of  Kentucky  escape  explora- 
tion. The  same  sumtner  had  witnessed  an  excursion,  con- 
ducted by  Colonel  James  Knox,  of  North  Carolina,  to  the  re- 
mote regions  west  of  the  Cumberland  Mountains.  With  a 
party  of  nine  hunters  and  woodsmen,  he  passed  the  Cumber- 
land Gap,  and  penetrated  westward  to  the  sources  of  Green 
River  and  upon  the  lower  portion  of  the  Cumberland,  nearly 
one  hundred  miles  south  of  the  eminence  from  which  Boone 
first  beheld  the  plains  of  Kentucky.  This  party  under  Colonel 
Knox  was  absent  several  months,  and  was  known  among  the 
western  people  of  North  Carolina  as  "Long  Hunters."* 

While  these  explorations  were  being  made  in  Kentucky, 
nearly  three  hundred  miles  west  of  the  most  advanced  settle- 
ments of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina,  and  while  the  popula- 
tion was  rapidly  augmenting  upon  the  sources  of  the  Monon- 
gahela  and  Greenbrier  from  Northern  Virginia  and  Maryland, 
the  hardy  pioneers  of  North  Carolina  were  moving  forward 
and  forming  settlements  upon  the  Nolichucky,  the  French 
Broad,  the  Watauga,  and  other  branches  of  the  Holston,  and 
upon  the  sources  of  New  River.  Others,  filled  with  the  spirit 
of  emigration,  deigned  not  to  limit  their  movements  to  a  few 
hundred  miles.  The  Mississippi  itself  did  not  limit  their  jour- 
ney. The  English  possessed  the  Floridas  and  the  Illinois  coun- 
try. West  Florida  was  bounded  on  the  west,  for  more  than  two 
hundred  miles,  by  the  Mississippi  River,  and  the  branches  of  the 
Holston  opened  a  direct  water  communication  for  nearly  two 
thousand  miles  of  circuitous  but  easy  navigation.  The  crown 
of  Great  Britain  desired  to  see  the  colonial  population  flow  into 
Florida,  and  had  held  out  inducements  for  settlers  to  emigrate 
from  Carolina.  Those  emigrating  from  the  western  parts  of 
North  Carolina  and  Virginia  could  advance  by  land  to  the  Hol- 
ston, and  there  commence  their  voyage  in  flat-boats  or  barges, 
at  Long  Island,  in  the  Cherokee  nation,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles,  by  water,  above  the  mouth  of  the  French  Broad.f  The 
point  of  destination  in  West  Florida  was  the  upland  region  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  Walnut  Hills,  of  Natchez,  Bayou  Sara,  and 
Baton  Rouge. 

The  British  government,  since   the  treaties  of  17G8,  had 

*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  18, 19.  t  Imlay'i  America,  p.  499 


350 


III8T0KY    OP   TUB 


[book  III. 


thrown  ofT  all  disguise  as  to  the  occupancy  of  the  western 
country,  and  the  most  olluring  inducements  were  held  out  to 
western  emigration.  Western  |x)sts  were  maintained  with 
military  garrisons  for  the  protection  of  the  remote  settlements 
against  the  effects  of  Indian  jealousy  and  revenge.  Although 
no  evidence  existed  of  any  hostile  designs  on  the  part  of  the 
savages,  Fort  Pitt  was  occupied  by  two  companies  of  '♦  Royal 
Irish  Infantry,"  under  command  of  Captain  Edmonson.  This 
post  at  this  time  was  a  regular  stockade  fort,  on  two  sides 
facing  the  Alleghany  and  Monongahela,  defended  by  block- 
houses and  bastions.  On  the  land  side  was  a  regular  brick 
wall  mounted  with  cannon,  and  surrounded  by  a  wide  and 
deep  ditch.* 

Before  the  close  of  the  year  1770,  settlements  had  advanced 
upon  the  Youghiogeny  and  Monongahela  below  the  Red  Stone 
Old  Fort,  and  westward  to  the  Ohio.  They  approached  the 
Monongahela  chiefly  by  Braddock's  "Old  Road,"  and  to  Red 
Stone  Old  Fort  by  the  route  opened  by  Colonel  Burd  ten  years 
before.  Brook  county,  in  the  western  neck  of  Virginia,  and 
Washington  county,  in  Western  Pennsylvania,  had  already  re- 
ceived their  first  Anglo-American  population.  Others,  still 
more  daring,  had  descended  the  Ohio  as  far  as  Wheeling,  and 
had  commenced  settlements  in  the  limits  of  the  present  county 
of  Ohio,  more  than  ninety  miles  below  Fort  Pitt  by  the  river 
channel.  Among  those  who  reached  these  remote  regions  for 
frontier  residences  were  the  three  brothers,  Jonathan,  Ebe- 
nezer,  and  Silas  Zane,  besides  many  other  woodsmen  and  pi- 
oneers. The  same  year  Ebenezer  Zane  selected  the  present 
site  of  Wheeling  as  his  location;  another  settlement  was 
formed  at  the  same  time  on  Wheeling  Creek,  near  the  "  Forks," 
a  few  miles  above  its  mouth. f 

Explorations  for  future  settlements  and  locations  of  land 
were  spreading  upon  the  western  tributaries  of  the  Mononga- 
hela, upon  the  upper  branches  of  the  Great  Kenhawa,  the 
Greenbrier,  and  New  Rivers,  and  also  upon  the  Little  Ken- 
hawa, and  upon  Gauly  River.  The  prospect  of  wealth  and 
future  independence  in  the  fertile  regions  west  of  the  mountains 
was  sought  in  exchange  for  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of 
the  older  settlements,  laboriously  drawn  from  a  meager  soil. 

*  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington,  vol.  ii.,  p.  518. 
t  Butler's  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  48,  49. 


A.D.  1'770.] 


VALI.RY    OF    TUB    MIMinRirPI. 


357 


The  West  wns  a  virgin  soil,  which  would  more  thnn  repay  the 
temporary  inconveniences  of  a  now  settlement,  and  afford  a 
prospect  of  future  competence  to  a  rising  family. 

The  same  tide  of  emigration  continued  from  the  southern 
portions  of  Virginia  and  from  North  Carolina,  flowing  heyond 
the  sources  of  the  Yadkin  and  Catawba,  and  upon  the  upper 
branches  of  the  north  fork  of  Holston,  and  upon  the  tributaries 
of  Clinch  River,  beyond  the  limits  assigned  to  the  white  inhab- 
itants by  the  treaty  of  Hard  Labor  in  1768.  The  settlement?! 
on  Powell's  River,  and  other  western  branches  of  Clinch  River, 
were  within  the  Indian  territory,  and  the  Cherokees  began  to 
remonstrate  against  the  encroachment.  To  avoid  Indian  re- 
sentment, and  to  remove  all  occasion  for  hostilities  on  the  part 
of  the  Cherokees,  the  superintendent  of  "  Southern  Indian  Af- 
fairs" was  instructed  to  convene  a  council  of  the  chiefs,  war- 
riors, and  head  men  of  the  nation,  for  the  purpose  of  establish- 
ing a  new  boundary  further  west.  Accordingly,  the  treaty  of 
Lochaber  was  concluded  and  signed  on  the  18th  of  October, 
1770,  by  which  the  Cherokees  consent  to  a  new  boundary,  to 
include  the  white  population  on  Clinch  River. 

The  new  line  commenced  on  the  south  branch  of  Holston 
River,  six  miles  east  of  Long  Island  ;  thence  it  extended  in  a 
northwardly  course  to  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Kenhawa.* 
This  was  to  be  the  western  limit  for  the  settlements  of  Vir- 
ginia and  North  Carolina ;  and  as  yet  the  whole  southwestern 
portion  of  Virginia  was  a  wild  and  savage  wilderness,  with 
only  a  few  scattered  inhabitants  upon  the  head  waters  of  Hol- 
ston and  Clinch  Rivers.  The  site  of  the  present  town  of  Ab 
ington  was  a  frontier  settlement. 

The  provincial  Legislature  of  Virginia  at  its  next  session  pass- 
ed an  act,  which  received  the  sanction  of  the  royal  governor, 
for  the  encouragement  of  western  emigration.  This  act  allow- 
ed every  actual  settler  having  a  log-cabin  erected,  and  any  por- 
tion of  ground  in  cultivation,  the  right  to  four  hundred  acres  of 
land,  so  located  as  to  include  his  improvement.  A  subsequent 
act  extended  the  privilege  much  further,  allowing  the  owner 
and  occupant  of  each  four  hundred  aci'e  tract  the  preference 
right  of  purchasing  one  thousand  acres  adjoining  him,  at  such 
cost  as  scarcely  exceeded  the  expense  of  selecting  it,  and 

*  Seo  Butler's  Keutucky,  p.  51.    Also,  Hall's  Sketches,  vol  ii,,  p.  256  j  and  Treaty 
of  Lochaber,  p.  i260.  > 


358 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  III 


having  it  designated  by  a  regular  survey.  These  acts  greatly 
encouraged  emigration  to  the  West,  where  every  man,  with 
industry  rnd  perseverance,  could  not  fail  to  secure  himself  a 
comfortable  home,  and  a  valuable  estate  for  his  children.  Other 
provinces  enacted  similar  laWs  for  the  purpose  of  occupying 
their  western  lands.  Crowds  of  emigrants  immediately  ad- 
vanced to  secure  the  proffered  bounty ;  and  settlements  and 
explorations  rapidly  spread  upon  all  the  eastern  tributaries  of 
the  Ohio,  from  the  Alleghany  to  the  Cumberland  River. 

[A.D.  1771.]  In  the  "  District  of  West  Augusta,"  the  popu- 
lation of  Virginia  had  already  advanced  from  the  extreme 
sources  of  the  Monongahela  westward  to  the  Ohio  River,  and 
from  Fort  Pitt  down  to  Big  Grave  Creek,  and  in  many  points 
still  further.  The  remote,  isolated  settlements  were  provided 
with  a  strong  block-house,  or  a  secure  stockade  inclosing  a 
compact  village,  or  "  station,"  for  the  general  defense  of  the 
little  colony.  Although  no  hostile  demonstrations  had  been 
made  by  the  Indians,  it  was  deemed  requisite  to  observe  every 
prudential  measure  to  secure  the  helpless  families  against  sur- 
prise and  massacre.* 

Among  the  emigrants  upon  the  Monongahela,  under  the  pro- 
vision of  the  late  pre-emption  law  for  four  hundred  acres,  was 
Captain  Michael  Cresap,  who  had  been  a  soldier  in  the  French 
war  under  Braddock,  and  in  the  subsequent  campaign.*  He 
was  a  man  of  undoubted  courage,  and  had  been  an  active  de- 
fender of  the  frontier  settlements  during  Pontiac's  war.  In  the 
year  1771,  he  settled  upon  the  site  of  Redstone  Old  Fort  as  his 
pre-emption  claim,  and  erected  the  first  shingled-roof  house 
ever  built  in  the  town  of  Brownsville. 

During  the  year  1771,  such  was  the  throng  of  emigrants  to 
the  new  settlements  in  Western  Virginia,  upon  the  Youghio- 
geny,  Monongahela,  and  Upper  Ohio,  as  low  as  Big  Grave 
Creek,  that  an  alarming  scarcity  of  every  kind  of  breadstuff 
ensued.  To  such  an  extent  had  this  dearth  attained,  that  for 
more  than  six  months,  at  least  half  of  the  entire  population 
were  compelled  to  sustain  life  by  the  use  of  meats,  roots, 
vegetables,  and  milk,  to  the  entire  exclusion  of  all  bread  and 
grains.  This  period  became  memorable,  in  the  history  of  the 
early  population  of  this  part  of  the  country,  as  the  "  starving 
year."    Nor  did  the  settlements  recover  from  the  exhaustion, 

*  See  American  Pioneer,  vol.  ii.,  p.  63. 


C  III 

satly 
with 
elf  a 
)ther 
)ying 
y  ad- 
3  and 
ies  of 

popu- 
:treme 
ir,  and 
points 
avided 
sing  a 
of  the 
i  been 
}  every 
ast  sur- 

Lhe  pro- 
es,  was 
French 
*    He 
ive  de- 
Inthe 
t  as  his 
f  house 

rants  to 
[oughio- 
Grave 
jadstufF 
Ithat  for 
julation 
^,  roots, 
jad  and 
of  the 
starving 
laustion, 


A.D.  1772.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


359 


under  the  constant  influx  of  immigrants,  until  the  close  of  the 
year  1773,  when  abundant  crops  res*ored  a  supply  of  grain. 

[A..D.  1772.]  As  yet  the  habitations  Were  but  sparsely  dis- 
tributed upon  the  Ohio  below  Big  Grave  Creek,  and  the  whole 
region  between  the  upper  branches  of  the  Monongahela  and 
the  Little  Kenhawa  was  wholly  in  the  occupancy  of  the  In- 
dians, except  surveyors  and  exploring  parties,  wiio  were  con- 
tinually traversing  the  country.  The  settlements  were  becom- 
ing more  dense  upon  the  branches  of  Cheat,  the  East  branch 
of  the  Monongahela,  and  in  Tygart's  Valley,  and  also  upon  the 
upper  tributaries  of  Greenbrier,  Gauly,  and  Elk  Rivers.  The 
west  branch  of  the  Monongahela  was  wholly  in  the  Indian 
country. 

The  tide  of  emigration  to  the  Upper  Ohio  and  the  Youghio- 
geny  advanced  across  the  mountains  through  Pennsylvania, 
by  way  of  Forts  Bedford,  Ligonier,  and  Loyal  Hanna,  while 
those  from  Virginia  and  Maryland  advanced  by  way  of  Fort 
Cumberland  and  Redstone  Old  Fort.  At  that  early  period  the 
greater  portions  of  these  routes  lay  through  an  uninhabited 
wilderness  for  more  than  two  hundred  miles.  A  wagon  road 
was  unknown  west  of  the  eastern  settlements,  and  all  beyond 
was  a  solitary  horse-path,  or  "  trace,"  winding  through  defiles 
and  over  mountains  almost  inaccessible. 

Hence  the  early  immigrants  in  the  West  were  compelled  to 
travel  on  horseback,  in  single  file,  carrying  their  small  patri- 
mony and  personal  eflfects  upon  the  backs  of  pack-horses,  dfiven 
likewise  in  single  file.  Most  of  those  who  traversed  these 
"dangerous  wilds"  at  this  early  period  were  fortunately  en- 
cumbered with  but  a  scanty  share  of  this  world's  goods  requir- 
ing transportation,  unless  it  were  "the  poor  man's  boon,"  a 
thriving  family.  In  most  cases,  one  or  two  pack-horses  were 
amply  sufficient  to  bear  all  the  personal  effects  across  the 
mountains,  and  these  were  commonly  but  little  more  than  a 
frying-pan  or  an  iron  pot,  a  wheel,  a  hoe,  an  ax,  an  auger,  and 
a  saw,  besides  a  few  blankets  and  bedding.  The  indispensable 
portion  of  each  man's  personal  equipment  was  his  rifle ;  his  shot- 
pouch  and  powder-horn  were  a  part  of  his  wearing  apparel. 

If  the  pioneer  emigrant  were  so  happy  as  to  possess  a  wife 
and  a  few  children,  an  extra  horse  carried  the  one  with  her 
dowry,  and  another  pack-horse,  bestrode  by  two  large  hamp- 
ers, bore  the  children  to  their  western  homes. 


360 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  hi. 


[A.D.  1773.]  The  next  spring  opened  with  a  still  stronger 
tide  of  emigration  for  the  waters  of  the  Ohio,  both  on  the  north- 
ern and  on  the  southern  limits  of  Virginia.  The  habitations 
upon  the  numerous  branches  and  tributaries  of  the  Ohio  con- 
tinued to  multiply  and  extend.  Those  upon  the  sources  of  the 
Greenbrier  and  Gauly  were  gradually  extending  down  those 
rivers,  and  upon  the  upper  tributaries  of  the  Little  Kenhawa 
and  Elk  Rivers.  Further  west,  upon  the  latter  streams,  com- 
panies of  surveyors  and  explorers  were  busily  engaged  in  se- 
lecting and  locating  lands  for  future  settlements.* 

Nor  did  the  emigrants  and  explorers  stop  on  the  waters  of 
the  Upper  Ohio.  Hundreds  were  looking  far  beyond  the  pres- 
ent limits  of  Virginia.  The  British  province  of  West  Florida 
offered  advantages  not  less  than  those  of  the  Ohio  region,  and 
might  be  free  from  Indian  hostilities  and  dangers.  The  mild 
and  sunny  climate  of  the  Lower  Mississippi  had  its  charms  for 
others,  and  there  were  not  a  few  ^vho  had  left  their  homes  near 
the  Atlantic  coast,  and  were  on  their  journey  for  the  south. 
Before  the  summer  of  1773  had  passed,  four  hundred  families 
from  the  Atlantic  seaboard  advanced  through  the  wilderness 
to  the  Monongahela  and  Ohio  Rivers,  and  descended  in  boats 
for  the  Natchez  country.f  During  this  year,  also,  in  England 
a  pamphlet  had  been  published,  in  which  the  author  highly  ex- 
tolled "  the  advantages  of  a  settlement  on  the  Ohio  in  North 
America." 

During  the  early  part  of  the  summer,  Lord  Dunmore  had 
sent  out  several  parties  of  surveyors  upon  the  Great  Kenhawa, 
while  others  were  sent  as  far  west  as  the  "  Falls  of  Ohio,"  to 
locate  military  land-warrants  and  grants  in  the  delightful  re- 
gions upon  the  Kentucky  River.  Locations  were  made  the 
same  summer  on  the  south  side  of  the  Kentucky  River,  near 
Frankfort,  and  as  far  south  as  the  present  town  of  Danville.  J 

Among  the  enterprising  pioneer  surveyors  sent  to  Kentucky 
this  summer,  were  Hancock  Taylor  and  Captain  Thomas  Bullitt, 
who,  with  a  party  of  surveyors  from  southwestern  Virginia, 
crossed  the  mountains  to  the  Ohio  River,  by  way  of  the  Great 
Kenhawa.  They  reached  the  vicinity  of  the  Ohio  in  the  month 
of  May,  after  which  they  spent  several  weeks  in  making  surveys 
and  explorations  on  the  Kenhawa,  until  the  1st  of  July.     About 


*  Butler's  Keutacky,  chap,  ii.,  p.  SO. 
t  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  33. 


t  Holmes's  Annals,  vol.  ii.,  p.  185, 186. 


lOK'  IU> 

ronger 
( north- 
itations 
lio  con- 
s  of  the 
rn  those 
enhawa 
IS,  com- 
sd  in  se- 

raters  of 
the  pres- 
t  Florida 
ffion,  and 
rhe  mild 
liarms  for 
)me9near 
he  south, 
d  families 
vilderness 
d  in  boats 
1  England 
highly  ex- 
)  in  North 

tmore  had 
Kenhawa, 
•  Ohio,"  to 
ightful  re- 
made the 
liver,  near 

)anville.t 
Kentucky 
mas  Bullitt, 
n  Virginia, 
the  Great 
the  month 
ng  surveys 
|ly.     About 

L  p.  185,  186. 


A.D.  1773.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE   MISSISSIPPL 


361 


this  time  they  were  joined  by  the  three  brothers,  James,  George, 
and  Robert  M'Afee,  who  had  left  Botetourt  county  early  in 
June,  and  had  traveled  westward  across  the  country  to  New 
River,  and  thence  along  that  river  to  the  Kenhawa.  Early  in 
July  this  whole  company  of  surveyors  and  woodsmen  descend- 
ed the  Ohio  in  boats  to  "  the  falls."  Here  they  soon  afterward 
separated  to  their  respective  surveying  districts. 

The  three  M'Afees,  with  their  party,  proceeded  in  their  boats 
and  canoes  up  the  Ohio  to  the  mouth  of  Kentucky  River,  which 
they  ascended  as  far  as  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Frank- 
fort. Here  they  landed  and  encamped,  and  on  the  16th  day  of 
July  made  their  first  survey  of  a  tract  of  six  hundred  acres,  in- 
cluding the  gi'ound  upon  which  the  city  of  Frankfort  stands. 
This  was  the  first  survey  made  by  white  men  on  the  Kentucky 
River.  Other  surveys  were  subsequently  made  by  this  com- 
pany in  the  same  vicinity,  and  further  south,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Harrodsburg  and  Danville,  and  upon  the  sources  of  Salt  River.* 

In  the  mean  time.  Captain  Bullitt  had  made  his  camp  near 
the  mouth  of  Bear-grass  Creek ;  and,  having  made  several  loca- 
tions and  surveys  in  that  vicinity,  he  resolved  to  provide  for  his 
future  safety  by  conciliating  the  Indians,  and  thus  preventing 
their  jealous  suspicions  and  revenge  at  the  near  approach  of 
the  white  man's  camp.  He  accordingly  proceeded  alone  and 
on  foot  to  the  nearest  Shawanese  town  on  the  Scioto,  for  the 
purpose  of  forming  a  friendly  acquaintance  with  the  Indians. 
He  succeeded  in  his  hazardous  undertaking,  and  produced  in 
the  minds  of  the  chiefs  a  favorable  impression  as  to  his  feelings 
and  object,  before  suspicion  in  the  savage  had  ripened  into 
jealousy. 

After  his  return  to  camp,  he  proceeded  in  the  month  of  Au- 
gust to  lay  off  the  plan  for  a  town  near  the  site  of  the  present 
city  of  Louisville.  This  was  the  first  town  laid  ofTin  Kentucky 
by  the  early  pioneers. 

The  tide  of  emigration  was  equally  strong  to  the  western 
portions  of  North  Carolina,  and  within  the  limits  now  comprised 
in  the  eastern  portion  of  East  Tennessee.  Settlements  had  ex- 
tended down  the  north  branch  of  Holston,  upon  the  Nolichucky, 
French  Broad,  and  Clinch  Rivers,  and,  before  the  close  of  the 
year  1773,  had  spread  along  the  western  base  of  the  Alleghany 
range,  in  a  southwestern  direction,  for  nearly  one  hundred  and 

*  Butler's  History  of  Kentacky,  p.  SO-22. 


■  ^ 


362 


HISTORY    OF   THB 


[book  III. 


twenty  miles,  and  nearly  as  far  west  as  Long  Island  in  the 
south  fork  of  Holston.*  South  of  Holston  River  settlements 
were  rapidly  extending  upon  the  tributaries  of  the  French  Broad. 

This  year  witnessed  the  first  attempt  to  introduce  white  fe- 
males and  families  into  Kentucky,  and  the  first  decided  indica- 
tion from  the  Indians  that  they  would  resist  the  occupancy  of 
the  country.  The  fame  of  Kentucky  had  spread  through  the 
western  settlements  of  North  Carolina,  and  the  restless  popula- 
tion upon  the  waters  of  the  Yadkin,  New  River,  and  Holston 
having  heard  the  glowing  accounts  given  by  Boone  and  Fin- 
ley^  and  confirmed  by  other  hunters  and  pioneers,  began  to 
loathe  their  barren  hills  and  contracted  valleys,  and  to  sigh  for 
the  beautiful  and  fertile  plains  of  Kentucky ;  but  as  yet  no  fam- 
ily had  ever  attempted  to  advance  west  of  the  Cumberland 
range  of  mountains,  although  residences  had  already  been 
made  in  Powell's  Valley  and  on  Powell's  River,  on  the  eastern 
side.  That  range  was  considered  the  boundary  between  the 
whites  and  the  Cherokee  hunting-grounds,  as  established  by  the 
treaty  of  Lochaber  in  1770.  The  savage  was  jealous  of  fur- 
ther encroachments,  and  would  not  quietly  permit  intrusion  un- 
der any  pretext. 

Late  in  the  month  of  September,  Daniel  Boone,  having  col- 
lected a  little  colony  of  five  families  besides  his  own,  willing  to 
venture  beyond  the  Cumberland  Mountains,  left  the  peaceful 
banks  of  the  Yadkin  to  try  the  dangerous  wilds  of  Kentucky. 
With  these,  equipped  in  pioneer  style,  the  women  and  chil- 
dren mounted,  with  their  baggage  and  luggage  in  the  center 
of  the  procession,  he  proceeded  on  the  hazardous  journey  for 
the  southern  portion  of  Kentucky,  claimed  by  the  warlike 
Cherokees. 

After  a  tedious  and  hazardous  travel  of  near  two  hundred 
miles  over  the  most  elevated  and  mountainous  region  of  North 
Carolina  and  Southern  Virginia,  they  reached  Powell's  Valley, 
on  the  east  side  of  Cumberland  range.  Here  they  made  a  short 
stay  before  leaving  the  last  vestige  of  civilized  life,  and  little 
suspecting  the  dangers  which  lay  before  them  in  their  journey. 
But  the  Indians,  ever  jealous  of  the  white  man's  approach,  had 
observed  all  their  movements,  and  were  cautiously  preparing 
to  cut  them  off  at  the  proper  time,  should  they  continue  to  ad- 
vance beyond  the  limits  assigned  for  the  white  settlers.f 

*  See  Winterbothom'a  America,  vol.  ii.,  p.  25,  26. 

t  At  this  time  a  few  families  had  settled  on  Clinch  River,  about  fifteen  miles  sonth- 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISBIi^SIPPI. 


363 


Boone  proceeded  with  his  little  colony,  and  as  he  advanced 
toward  Cumberland  Gap,  about  the  5th  day  of  October,  he  was 
joined  in  Powell's  Valley  by  forty  armed  hunters,  who  were 
anxious  to  explore  the  newly-discovered  country  west  of  the 
Cumberland  range  of  mountains.  The  whole  now  formed  a 
caravan  of  nearly  eighty  persons  in  number,  and  had  advanced 
with  fine  spirits  and  joyful  hearts  until  the  10th  of  October, 
when  suddenly,  while  passing  a  narrow  defile,  they  were  star- 
tled by  the  terrific  yell  of  Indians  in  ambuscade,  by  whom  they 
were  furiously  assailed.  The  men  flew  to  the  protection  of 
the  helpless  women  and  children,  while  others  rushed  to  en- 
counter the  enemy  in  their  coverts.  A  scene  of  confusion  and 
consternation  for  a  moment  ensued ;  but  the  Indians,  surprised 
at  the  fierce  and  resolute  resistance  of  the  men,  soon  fled  in 
every  direction. 

The  first  fire  of  the  Indians  had  killed  six  men  and  wounded 
the  seventh.  Among  the  first  was  the  oldest  son  of  Daniel 
Boone,  a  youth  nearly  twenty  years  old.  This  was  a  sad  presage 
of  the  dangers  before  them,  and  the  whole  party  fell  back  forty 
miles,  to  the  nearest  settlement  on  the  CHnch  River.  Here  the 
emigrant  families  remained  until  the  termination  of  Lord  Dun- 
more's  war,  near  the  close  of  the  following  year.* 

[A.D.  1774.]  But  the  country  bordering  upon  the  Ohio  was 
considered  free  for  emigrants  from  the  older  settlements.  The 
Indian  title  had  been  extinguished  by  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stan- 
wix,  and  by  the  laws  of  Virginia  each  emigrant  was  entitled 
to  a  fine  landed  estate,  for  the  sole  consideration  of  designa- 
ting his  selection  by  a  small  improvement  upon  it.  Nor  was 
it  long  before  hundreds  of  hardy  and  fearless  emigrants,  from 
the  western  counties  of  Virginia  and  from  the  new  settlements 
on  the  Monongahela  and  Kenhawa,  determined  to  secure  por- 
tions of  the  fertile  regions  of  Kentucky.  Parties  of  surveyors 
and  pioneers  began  to  descend  the  Ohio,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  improvements  and  locations  for  future  residences  and 
farms. 

The  following  spring  presented  upon  the  waters  of  the  Mo- 
nongahela and  the  sources  of  the  two  Kenhawas  a  continual 
scene  of  emigration,  of  parties  of  surveyors  and  explorers,  dis- 

west  of  Powell's  Valley,  which  was  the  frontier  settlement  on  this  route,  or  within  the 
limits  of  the  Cherokee  nation. 

•  See  Marshall's  Kentucky,  vol.  i.,  p.  20, 21.  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  28.  Also,  Flint's 
Life  of  Boone,  p.  60. 


864 


HISTOttY    OP  THE 


[book  III. 


tributed  over  all  the  region  southwest  of  the  principal  forks 
of  the  Monongahela,  and  westward  to  the  Ohio  and  the  Great 
Kenhawa  Rivers.  Other  parties  were  advancing  further  south, 
and  westward  to  Kentucky ;  and  a  large  number  of  surveyors 
and  woodsmen  had  been  sent  to  that  region  by  Lord  Dunmore, 
for  the  purpose  of  locating  and  selecting  lands  under  royal 
grants  and  military  warrants. 

Among  the  first  explorers  and  pioneers  of  Kentucky  during 
the  year  1774,  we  may  enumerate  Simon  Kenton  and  his  par- 
ty, who  explored  the  country  from  Limestone  Creek,  at  the 
present  site  of  Maysville,  traversing  the  buffalo  trace  as  far 
as  the  Lower  Blue  Licks.  This  trace  he  found  opened  by  the 
herds  of  buffaloes,  like  a  wide,  beaten  road,  from  May's  Lick  to 
the  Licking  River.  Buffaloes  were  still  common,  and  elk  were 
frequently  seen  browsing  upon  the  hills  near  the  licks.* 

Kenton  returned  to  May's  Lick,  and  selected  a  tract  of  land, 
upon  which  he  made  a  "  tomahawk  improvement,"  including  a 
camp  and  an  acre  of  planted  corn,  near  the  present  site  of  the 
town  of  Washington.  But  Indian  hostilities,  especially  from 
the  Shawanese,  were  already  begun  in  Kentucky.  Returning 
one  evening  to  his  camp  from  the  day's  excursion,  he  found 
that  his  companion,  who  had  been  left  to  guard  the  camp,  had 
been  killed  and  scalped,  and  his  body,  half  consumed  by  fire, 
was  still  smoking  upon  the  pyre.f  His  first  care  was  to  se- 
cure himself  from  ambuscade;  after  which, he  was  compelled 
to  seek  safety  by  retiring  from  Kentucky,  and  abandoning  his 
improvement  until  the  danger  from  the  Indians  should  be  less 
imminent. 

As  yet, no  permanent  settlement  had  been  made  in  Kentucky, 
nor  did  the  Indians  intend  to  permit  them  to  be  made  in  their 
favorite  hunting-grounds.  No  white  man's  house, /or  residence^ 
had  yet  been  erected,  although  hundreds  had  explored  the  coun- 
try upon  the  Kentucky  River,  and  marked  their  "  tomahawk 
improvements."  During  the  summer,  however,  James  Harrod, 
from  the  Monongahela,  selected  a  place,  afterward  known 
as  ^"^ Harrod' s  Station"  six  miles  from  the  present  town  of 
Harrodsburg,  and  soon  afterward  he  erected  the  first  house 
for  a  residence  ever  built  by  a  white  man  in  Kentucky.  With 
his  party,  he  had  descended  the  Ohio  in  boats  and  canoes  to 
the  mouth  of  Kentucky  River,  which  he  ascended  as  far  as 

*  M'Donald's  Life  of  Kenton,  ed.  of  1643.  t  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  S3. 


v^^ 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


365 


"Harrod's  Landing,"  where  he  disembarked  for  his  settle- 
ment.* 

Heretofore  the  principal  object  of  all  the  explorers  upon  the 
waters  of  the  Kentucky  River  had  been  to  make  pre-emption, 
or  "tomahawk  improvements,"  or  to  locate  lands  already 
granted  by  the  provincial  authorities.  Tracts  so  selected 
were  run  off  by  the  compass,  or  bounded  by  some  branch  or 
water-course,  and  marked  by  blazing  a  few  trees  with  the 
tomahawk,  planting  a  patch  of  corn,  or  erecting  a  temporary 
hut.  Either  of  these  was  sufficient  to  indicate  that  the  land 
had  been  already  appropriated  by  an  inchoate  title.  The 
house  erected  by  James  Harrod  was  a  regular  log-house,  de- 
signed for  the  future  residence  of  his  family,  when  ciixum- 
stances  would  justify  their  removal. 

The  jurisdiction  of  Virginia  had  already  been  extended  over 
the  whole  region  upon  the  Youghiogeny  and  Monongahela, 
as  far  as  the  settlements  extended,  and  westward  to  the  Ohio 
River,  north  of  Big  Grave  Creek,  under  the  name  of  the  "  Dis- 
trict of  West  Augusta."t  The  country  south  of  Grave  Creek 
was  uninhabited  by  white  men,  and  remained  in  the  full  pos- 
session of  the  native  Indians.J  West  Augusta,  as  a  district  of 
Virginia,  for  several  years  comprised  all  the  western  inhab- 
itants from  the  Little  Kenhawa  northward  to  Fort  Pitt. 

The  settlements  west  of  the  Monongahela,  and  upon  the  Ohio 
above  the  present  site  of  Wheeling,  had  been  steadily  increas- 
ing their  population.  Numerous  parties  of  surveyors  and  ex- 
plorers were  advancing  upon  the  waters  of  the  Little  and  the 
Great  Kenhawa,  and  westward  to  the  Ohio.  The  whole  coun- 
try was  overrun  by  parties  of  pioneers  and  explorers,  to  the 
great  annoyance  of  the  Indians,  who  claimed  the  possession 
of  the  lands ;  but  the  whites  disregarded  both  their  claims  and 
their  remonstrances. 

But  a  sad  reverse  was  about  to  overtake  the  western  settle- 
ments, and  a  signal  check  put  to  their  advance.  The  hardy 
pioneers,  in  their  new  homes  in  the  wilderness,  amid  all  the 
hardships  and  privations  of  a  frontier  life,  were  about  to  en- 

*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  26.  t  American  Pioneer,  vol.  ii.,  p.  303-:i06. 

t  Dr.  Briscoe,  a  wealthy  planter  fram  Virginia,  had  formed  a  settlement  at  the  nioutii 
of  the  Little  Kenhawa,  composed  of  several  families  and  a  number  of  negro  slaves, 
which  was  commenced  in  1773 ;  at  the  same  time,  a  settlement  was  first  luadu  at 
Big  Grave  Creek.  Both  were  abandoned  in  1774. — See  M'Donald's  Life  of  Kenton, 
p,  805. 


366 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


counter  all  the  horrors  of  an  Indian  war — a  war  of  extermina- 
tion, which  knows  no  mercy,  even  to  the  infant  and  its  defense- 
less mother. 

Since  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix,  six  years  had  elapsed,  and 
the  Indians  had  gradually  retired  from  the  eastern  sources  and 
tributaries  of  the  Monongahela,  and  were  slowly  removing  to 
the  west  side  of  the  Ohio.  They  were  still  inclined  to  main- 
tain a  friendly  intercourse  with  the  whites,  although  jealous  of 
the  encroachments,  and  grieved  to  see  the  rapid  advance  and 
the  unfeeling  deportment  of  the  settlers  toward  their  waning 
tribes ;  they  seldom  gave  occasion  for  outrage  or  bloodshed. 
Although  they  had  often  been  the  subjects  of  injustice  and  ag- 
gression from  the  petty  tyranny  of  unprincipled  men,  they  had 
not  been  charged  with  any  overt  act  of  hostility. 

In  a  frontier  country,  and  among  a  population  of  such  op- 
posite races  of  men,  one  small  act  of  injustice  brings  on  another, 
until  both  become  arrayed  in  deadly  hostility.  So  in  relation 
to  the  war  which  was  about  to  break  forth.  Small  things  were 
only  the  precursors  of  the  most  atrocious  acts.  A  petty  theft 
from  a  lawless  white  man  involves  two  nations  in  a  war  of  ex- 
termination. Injustice  and  aggravated  aggression  are  sure  to  be 
on  the  side  of  power ;  and  the  Indians  had  submitted  patiently 
until  resistance  became  a  virtue,  and  vengeance  was  taken  into 
their  own  hands.  In  this  manner,  the  aggressions  of  the  reck- 
less emigrants  of  Western  Virginia  brought  on  that  series  of 
Indian  hostilities  comprised  under  the  name  of  "  Lord  Dun- 
more's  war." 

This  spring  witnessed  the  erection  of  a  fort  at  Wheeling  for 
the  protection  of  the  frontier  people.  It  was  brought  about 
in  the  following  manner :  A  party  of  near  one  hundred  emi- 
grants from  Eastern  Virginia  had  arrived  upon  the  Ohio  on 
their  way  to  Kentucky.  About  the  latter  part  of  April  they 
were  encamped  near  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Kenhawa.  Ap- 
prehensive of  an  outbreak  of  Indian  treachery,  they  were  in- 
duced to  defer  their  location  in  Kentucky  until  the  hostile  at- 
titude of  the  Shawanese  should  be  changed.  Captain  Michael 
Cresap,  of  Redstone  Old  Fort,  being  in  their  vicinity  making  a 
settlement,  advised  the  party  to  retire  nearer  the  older  settle- 
ments, for  greater  security  from  Indian  barbarities.  They  ac- 
cordingly retired  to  the  bank  of  the  Ohio  River,  just  above  the 
mouth  of  Wheeling  Creek,  where  they  commenced  the  con- 


t.. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY   OF   TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


367 


struction  of  a  stockade  fort  for  their  mutual  protection.  The  sit- 
uation of  this  stockade  was  a  few  hundred  yards  above  Wheel- 
ing Creek,  and  near  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Wheeling. 
The  plan  of  the  fort  was  prepared  by  Major  George  Rogers 
Clark,  who  was  one  of  the  party.*  The  work  was  immediately 
commenced  under  the  superintendence  of  Ebenezer  Zane  and 
John  Caldwell,  two  experienced  frontier  men,  who  had  already 
made  improvements  and  a  settlement  on  Wheeling  Creek.  The 
fort,  when  completed,  was  called  "  Fort  Fincastle,"  and  was  de- 
signed as  a  place  of  security  for  the  settlers  in  that  vicinity  ; 
and  during  the  war  which  followed,  they  had  ample  need  of  its 
protection. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  attitude  of  the  Indians  foreboded  hos- 
tilities, requiring  the  settlements  to  be  placed  in  a  condition  to 
avoid  surprise.  To  this  effect,  Doctor  Connolly,  the  royal 
"  captain  commandant  of  West  Augusta,"  then  at  Pittsburgh, 
authorized  Captain  Michael  Cresap,  an  experienced  and  brave 
Indian  fighter,  to  use  his  influence  with  this  party  of  emigrants, 
and  induce  them  to  "  cover  the  country  with  scouts  until  the 
inhabitants  could  fortify  themselves."  Accordingly,  recon- 
noitering  or  scouting  parties  were  sent  out  in  all  directions,  and 
the  settlers  proceeded  to  fortify  the  stations.  Captain  Cresap 
took  command  of  Fort  Fincastle.f 

*  Among  the  party  of  fearless  pioneers  were  also  Joseph  Bowman,  Hugh  M'Gary, 
and  many  others  who  afterward  figured  in  the  settlement  of  Kentucky, 
t  American  Pioneer,  vol  ii.,  p.  303. 


368 


HI8T0RY   OF   TUB 


[book  III. 


CHAPTER  III. 

LOUD  DUNMORb's  INDIAN  WAR  :  EXTENSION  OP  THE  WESTERN  BET- 
TLKMENT8  FROM  THE  TREATY  OP  "  CAMP  CHARLOTTE*'  TO  THE 
DECLARATION  OP  INDEPENDENCE. A.D.  1774  TO  1770. 

Arfiiimenl.—Tho  Indians  reluctantly  aiient  to  Boundaries  claimed  by  the  Treaty  of  Fort 
8tnuwix. — Outrages  of  lawless  white  Afcn  provoke  Indian  Resentment. — Explor- 
ers and  Land-jobbers. — Rumor  of  Indian  Depru<1ations  circulated  by  them. — Alarm  ex- 
cited among  Explorers. — Captain  Cresap  advises  Violence,  and  heads  a  Party  which 
murders  some  Indians  above  Wheeling  and  at  Captina  Creek. — Greathouso  leads 
another  Party  against  the  Indians  at  Yellow  Creek. — Other  Murders  preceding  these. 
— Murder  of  "  Dald  Kagle"  Chief — Five  Families  at  Bulltowii.— Indian  Revenge 
commences  upon  the  Traders. — Consternation  on  the  Frontier. — Settlements  aban- 
doned.— Union  Station  near  Laurel  Hill  establislied. — Hostile  Incursions  of  Indians. 
— Defensive  Measures  under  Lord  Dunmore. — The  Wappatomica  Campaign  under 
General  M  Donald. — Surveys  and  Explorations  in  Kentucky  suspended  in  1774. — 
Daniel  Boone  conducts  Surveyors  to  old  Sctfleuieuts. — General  Lewis  marches  down 
the  Kenhawa. — Loams  the  Change  of  Dunmore's  Plans. — The  severe  "Battle  of  the 
Point."— Loss  of  the  Virginians  and  of  Indians. — "  Cornstalk,"  the  King  of  the  Shaw- 
nnese. — Lord  Dunmore's  Advance  to  the  Scioto. — "  Camp  Charlotte"  fortified.— Op- 
erations against  the  Shawancse  Towns. — Negotiations  with  the  Indians. — General 
Lewis  advances  to  the  Scioto. — He  indignantly  obeys  Dunmore's  Order  to  halt. — 
Treaty  of  Camp  Charlotte  opened. — Speech  of  Cornstalk  j  of  Logan.— Stipulations 
of  this  Treaty. — Peoco  proclaimed,  January  7th,  1775.— Suspicions  against  Lord 
Dunmore. — Emigration  revives  in  the  West. — Explorations  resumed  in  Kentucky. — 
Colonel  Floyd  on  Bear-grass  Crock. — Other  Surveys  and  Settlements.^ — Settlementa 
on  the  Holston  and  Clinch  in  1775. — Pre]>arations  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  for 
the  Occupancy  of  Kentucky. — Patrick  Henry  and  others. — Colonel  Henderson  and 
others. — Treaty  of  Watauga. — Colonel  Henderson's  Land  Company. — Preparations 
for  establishing  the  Colony  of  Transylvania. — Boone  Pioneer  of  the  Colony  to  Kentucky 
River. — Boonesborough  erected. — Colonel  Henderson  leads  out  his  Colony. — Boone 
leads  another  in  the  Fall. — "  Plan  of  Boonesborough." — Logan's  Fort  built. — Com- 
pany's Land-oiBcc. — Proprietary  Government  established  in  Transylvania,  177.'). — Acts 
of  Legislature,  second  Session. — The  Company  memorialize  the  Federal  Congress. — 
Opposition  to  the  Proprietary  Government. — Transylvania  Republic  merges  into  the 
State  Govermncnt  of  Virginia. — Settlements  begin  to  form  on  the  north  Side  of  Ken- 
tucky River. — Harrod's  Station  erected  in  1776. — Colonel  Harrod  intro<luces  the  first 
Families  from  the  Monongahela. — Declaration  of  American  Independence. — Indian 
Hostilities  begin  in  Kentucky. — Preparations  for  Defense. — Major  George  Rogers 
Clark  superintends  the  Militia  Organization. 

[A.D.  1774.]  As  we  have  shown,  the  Indian  tribes  west 
of  the  Ohio  seemed  disposed,  for  a  time,  quietly  to  submit 
to  their  fate,  and  permit  the  white  inhabitants  to  occupy  all 
the  territory  east  of  the  Ohio  River.  But  at  length  the 
whites,  by  one  act  of  aggression  after  another,  roused  up  the 
sleeping  vengeance  of  the  savage  to  active  war.  The  imme- 
diate provocation  to  hostilities  was  an  unprovoked  and  wanton 
murder  of  two  parties  of  peaceable  Indians  by  a  reckless  band 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    or   THE    MISSIflfllPPL 


860 


ipross.— 
into  tho 
of  Ken- 
tho  first 
— Indinu 
llogcrs 

west 
lubmit 
)y  all 
|h  the 
ip  the 
imme- 
fanton 

band 


of  white  men,  livinji;  on  the  east  side  of  the  Ohio,  in  the  settle* 
ments  above  and  below  Wheeling. 

It  is  a  fact  which  has  been  verified  by  all  experience,  from 
the  first  occupancy  of  the  British  colonies  in  North  America  up 
to  the  present  time,  that  when  the  tide  of  emigration  sets  strong 
toward  the  wilderness  occupied  by  the  native  tribes,  a  large 
proportion  of  the  most  lawless  and  worthless  part  of  the  jiopu- 
lation  is  carried  in  advance  of  the  older  settlements,  like  drift- 
wood upon  a  swollen  river.  Hence  it  is  almost  impossible  for 
the  civil  authorities  to  restrain  acts  of  lawless  violence  in  such 
persons  on  the  extreme  confines  of  civilization.  Men  who  are 
impatient  of  the  wholesome  restraints  of  law  and  social  order 
naturally  seek  those  parts  of  a  civilized  community  where  the 
arm  of  the  civil  authority  is  weakened  by  distance,  or  where 
they  find  themselves  beyond  the  reach  of  civil  government. 
Hence  the  extreme  frontier  settlements  are  always  more  or 
less  composed  of  a  population  which,  from  their  natural  and  de- 
praved propensities,  are  prone  to  keep  up  a  spirit  of  hostility 
with  the  neighboring  savages,  to  the  great  detriment  of  the  bet- 
ter classes  of  emigrants. 

In  the  settlements  which  were  crowding  upon  the  east  side 
of  the  Ohio,  there  were  many  individuals  such  as  we  have  de- 
scribed, and  who  kept  in  advance  of  the  more  orderly  and  vir- 
tuous portion  of  the  community. 

The  particulars  of  the  outrages  which  roused  the  Indians 
to  hostile  revenge  in  the  summer  of  1774,  and  at  the  record 
of  which  humanity  weeps,  are  as  follows :  In  the  month  of 
April,  a  rumor  obtained  circulation  that  some  Indians  had  sto- 
len several  horses  from  a  party  of  land-jobbers  near  the  Ohio 
and  Kenhawa  Rivers.  This  report,  doubtless,  may  have  had 
some  foundation  in  truth,  but  it  was  propagated  by  designing 
and  evil  men.  Some,  affecting  to  believe  the  rumor  true,  de- 
duced from  the  facts  a  hostile  intention  on  the  part  of  the  Indians 
against  the  white  settlements.  The  object  in  view  appears  to 
have  been  a  breach  of  the  friendly  state  of  feeling  between  the 
white  inhabitants  and  the  Indian  tribes  residing  on  the  west 
side  of  the  Ohio.  Although  the  Indians  had  always  looked 
with  a  jealous  eye  upon  the  advance  of  the  white  population, 
yet  there  is  no  reasonable  ground  to  suspect,  on  this  occasion, 
any  hostile  designs  on  their  part  against  the  settlements  previ- 
ous to  the  outrages  which  were  the  immediate  cause  of  the  war. 

Vol.  I. — A  a 


370 


HISTORY    or   TIIR 


[book  III. 


Nonr  tho  Inst  of  April  the  Iiind-jobbeni,  tlio  bnne  of  nil  new 
countries,  collected  in  considerable  numbers  nt  Wheeling,  ul- 
legiiif^  the  apprehension  of  a  hostile  attack  fronn  the  Indians. 
The  true  cause,  no  doubt,  was  cowardice  and  conscious  guilt, 
if  not  a  desire  to  ennbroil  the  savages  in  a  war  of  extermination. 
A  few  days  afterward,  it  was  known  that  two  Indians,  with 
their  families,  were  descending  the  river  a  few  miles  above 
Wheeling.  Upon  learning  this  fact,  (Captain  Cresap,  who  had 
command  of  Fort  Fincastle,  proposed  to  kill  the  Indians  with- 
out further  inquiry.  Colonel  Zane,  the  proprietor  of  Wheeling, 
vehemently  opposed  any  such  proposition.  He  represented  in 
glowing  colors  the  extreme  folly  and  atrocity  of  such  conduct ; 
he  declared  that  the  wanton  murder  of  those  Indians  would 
stir  up  a  bloody  revenge  against  the  settlements,  and  bring  n 
fierce  Indian  war,  with  all  its  horrors,  upon  the  innocent  frontier 
inhabitants,  which  would  cause  the  name  of  Tresap  to  be  held 
in  execration  by  hundreds  of  widows  and  orphans ;  but  his 
voice  and  counsel  were  disregarded,  and  Captain  Cresap,  with 
his  party,proceeded  to  execute  their  blood-thirwty  designs.  The 
party  of  Indians  were  met  a  few  miles  above  the  town,  and 
deliberately  shot  in  their  canoes.  These  reckless  men  then  re- 
turned to  Wheeling  in  the  bloody  canoes  of  their  murdered 
victims ;  and  when  questioned,  they  significantly  replied  that 
the  Indians  "  had  fallen  overboard  into  the  river." 

This  first  murder  only  served  to  stimulate  them  to  further 
deeds  of  blood.  The  same  evening  rumor  informed  them  of  an 
Indian  camp  near  the  mouth  of  Captina  Creek,  a  few  miles  be- 
low Wheeling.  The  same  party,  with  some  others,  set  out  and 
descended  the  river  to  the  Indian  camp.  Here  they  deliberately 
shot  several  Indians  in  cold  blood,  and  by  whose  attempt  to  de- 
fend themselves  one  of  Cresap's  men  was  severely  wounded.* 

A  few  days  after  this  second  murder  had  been  perpetrated, 
another  still  more  atrocious  was  committed  upon  a  party  of  In- 
dians near  the  mouth  of  Yellow  Creek,  and  about  forty  miles 
above  Wheeling.  Daniel  Greathouse,  afiecting  to  apprehend 
danger  for  "  Baker's  Bottom,"  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  not 
far  from  an  Indian  camp  near  Yellow  Creek,  collected  a  party 
of  thirty-two  men,  and  proceeded  up  to  Baker's  Bottom.  Here 
the  party  concealed  themselves  near  the  bank  of  the  river, 
while  their  commander,  Greathouse,  crossed  the  river  alone, 

*  Doddridge'!  Notei,  p.  226-229.    See  Americaa  Pioneer,  vol.  i.,  p.  8. 


C  III. 

new 

;?,  ul- 
[ians. 
guilt, 
ition. 
,  with 
ibove 
o  had 
with- 
lelingf 
ited  in 
iduct ; 
would 
ring  n 
rentier 
)e  held 
but  his 
ip,with 
,s.  The 
vn,  and 
ihen  re- 
ardered 
ed  that 

further 
m  of  an 
liles  be- 
out  and 
)erately 
)t  to  de- 
inded.* 
[etrated, 
y  of  In- 
y  miles 
rehend 
|ver,  not 
a  party 
Here 
le  river, 
|r  alone, 

I  8. 


A.D.   1774.]  VALLEY    or   TIIR    MIBKIMBIPri. 


371 


under  the  miiHk  of  friundHhip,  to  Hpy  out  the  Indian  forre,  nnd 
to  ascurtuiti  their  nunibcrH  and  [H>Nition.  While  approaithing 
the  curnp,  an  Indian  woman  advised  him  to  return  and  to  do- 
part  speedily,  for  the  warriors,  highly  exasperated  at  the  lute 
riiiirders,  were  drinking,  and  might  do  him  Home  injury.  Ho 
returne<l  !>  his  party,  and  reported  the  Indians  too  strong  for 
an  opcen  attack.  Baker  had  been  in  the  habit  of  selling  whisky 
to  the  Indians,  and  was  therefore  a  fit  tool  for  Grenthouse  in 
his  contemplated  treachery  and  murder.  A  plan  was  agreed 
on  that  Baker  should  freely  supply  with  whisky  all  who  could 
be  decoyed  over  the  river.  At  length  many  were  decoyed 
over,  all  of  whom  were  made  beastly  drunk.  In  this  condition, 
Greathouse  and  a  few  others  of  his  party  fell  upon  them,  and 
murdered  them  in  cold  blood.  The  squaw  who  had  given 
Greathouse  the  friendly  advice  near  the  Indian  camp  was  one 
of  the  victims  of  this  bloody  tragedy.  Others  from  the  camp, 
attracted  by  the  reports  of  the  guns,  came  to  seek  their  friends, 
but  they  were  deliberately  shot  while  crossing  the  river. 

Doddridge  observes,  "  It  is  but  justice  to  state,  that  out  of  the 
party  of  thirty-two,  only  five  or  six  were  actually  engaged  in 
this  atrocious  murder."  We  should  feel  no  desire  to  screen 
the  memories  of  the  guilty  twenty-five,  who  would  permit  a 
few  desperate  fellows  among  them  to  perpetrate  deliberate  and 
outrageous  murder,  which  they  might  profess  to  abhor.  But 
their  names  are  not  permitted  to  be  inscribed  upon  the  page  of 
history.  Their  posterity,  of  course,  are  exempt  from  the  odium 
which  attached  to  the  men  who  could  permit  a  diabolical  out- 
rage of  this  kind  without  interference.  Virtue,  so  feeble  in 
the  cause  of  justice  and  humanity,  is  a  curse  rather  than  a 
blessing  to  its  possessors. 

The  murders  perpetrated  at  Captina  and  Yellow  Creeks  in- 
cluded the  whole  family  of  the  generous  and  unfortunate  Logan, 
who  became  noted  in  the  war  which  followed.  He  had  long 
been  the  friend  of  the  whites,  and  the  advocate  of  peace  among 
his  red  brethren.  He  now  became  vindictive,  and  proved  him- 
self a  bold  and  active  warrior  against  the  Virginia  frontier.* 

*  Soon  after  the  munlera  at  Captina  and  Yellow  Creeks  by  the  parties  under  Cresap 
and  Greathouse,  the  authorities  of  Pennsylvania  took  the  precaution  to  dispatch  mes- 
sengers to  the  Indians  to  inform  them  that  those  outrages  were  not  committed  by  I'onn- 
sylvanians,  end  that  the  government  of  Pennsylvania  disavowed  and  condemned  them, 
and  therefore  were  not  the  proper  objects  of  their  revenge.  This  timely  notice  given 
tu  the  Indians  is  probably  the  reason  why  the  war  was  not  carried  on  against  the  fron- 
tier settlements  of  Pennsylvania,  but  was  directed  chiefly  against  tliose  of  Virginia, 


872 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  III. 


Nor  were  the  murders  at  Captina  and  Yellow  Creeks  ihe 
first  or  only  outrages  of  the  whites  upon  the  Indians.  Other 
murders  equally  atrocious  had  been  perpetrated  by  the  lawless 
whites  with  impunity.  Such  was  the  force  of  public  senti- 
ment ;  such  the  prejudices  and  animosity  of  the  frontier  popula- 
tion against  the  Indians,  that  no  redress  could  be  obtained 
from  the  civil  authorities  for  injuries  inflicted  upon  them  by 
white  men.  Previous  to  the  Captina  tragedy,  a  white  man 
had  been  committed  to  prison  in  Winchester  charged  with  the 
willful  murder  of  a  peaceable  Indian ;  but  an  armed  mob  sur- 
rounded the  jail,  and  forcibly  released  the  prisoner  from  the 
custody  of  the  law.  Again,  an  old  and  distinguished  chief, 
called  "  Bald  Eagle,"  who  had  long  been  friendly  toward  the 
whites,  had  lived  with  them,  and  had  hunted  with  them,  being 
alone  in  the  woods  near  the  Monongahela,  was  attacked  by 
three  white  men  and  killed.  Afterward,  they  placed  the  life- 
less body  of  their  victim  in  a  sitting  posture  in  his  canoe,  and 
sent  it  adrift  down  the  stream. 

At  "  Bulltown,"  on  the  Little  Kenhawa,  there  were  five 
Indian  families,  who  had  lived  and  hunted  with  the  whites  near 
Buchanan's  River  and  upon  Hacker's  Creek.  These  families 
were  all  killed  by  lawless  individuals,  under  a  pretext  of  re- 
venging the  deaths  of  a  white  family  which  had  been  murdered 
by  a  party  of  hostile  Indians  on  Gauly  River.  The  white  in- 
habitants of  Bulltown  remonstrated  strongly  against  the  de- 
signs which  these  men  entertained  against  these  innocent  In- 
dians, whom  they  had  long  known,  and  whom  they  believed 
above  suspicion.  But  all  was  in  vain ;  their  skins  were  In- 
dian, and  they  were  all  deliberately  shot,  and  their  bodies 
thrown  into  the  river  by  these  desperadoes.* 

Immediately  after  the  murders  at  Captina  and  Yellow  Creeks, 
the  smothered  fire  of  revenge  broke  out  into  open  hostilities. 
The  Shawanese,  on  the  Scioto,  were  principals  in  the  'war ; 
and  the  warriors  of  other  northern  and  western  tribes  entered 
into  alliance  with  them.  They  first  murdered  all  the  traders 
and  white  men  found  within  the  Indian  country.  A  young 
man,  taken  by  the  Indians  near  the  falls  of  Muskingum,  was 
killed,  and  his  body,  cut  into  fragments,  was  scattered  to  the 


where  all  manner  of  savage  barbarities  were  inflicted. —  See  Gordon's  HiBtory  of 
Pennsylvania,  p.  475. 

*  See  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  53,  54. 


111. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


S78 


the 
her 
less 
;nti- 
lula- 
ined 
1  by 
man 
[1  the 
sur- 
\  the 
chief, 
d  the 
being 
ed  by 
e  life- 
B,  and 

■e  five 

s  near 

imilies 
of  re- 

rdered 

lite  in- 
le  de- 

ent  In- 
ilieved 
ire  In- 
bodies 

'reeks, 
tilities. 
•war ; 
mtered 
tradei'S 
young 
was 
to  the 

liBtory  of 


four  winds.  Savage  fury  and  revenge  knew  no  bounds,  and 
the  innocent  families  upon  the  frontiers  were  doomed  to  de- 
struction.* 

Consternation  spread  through  all  the  frontier  settlements, 
from  the  sources  of  the  Monongahela  to  the  Kenhawa ;  the  set- 
tlers fled  from  their  homes  toward  the  mountains ;  others  re- 
tired into  forts  and  stations.  Fort  Pitt  and  Redstone  Fort 
were  among  their  asylums. 

The  settlements  within  striking  distance  of  the  Ohio  were 
entirely  deserted.  The  greater  portion  of  the  women  and  chil- 
dren were  removed  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  miles  back  from 
the  frontier  border,  and  safely  lodged  in  "  stations"  and  fortified 
camps  near  the  mountains,  while  the  men  were  compelled  to 
expose  themselves  to  innumerable  hardships  and  privations  to 
procure  food  for  their  families  and  to  protect  them  from  the 
marauding  bands  of  hostile  Indians.  A  large  fortified  station, 
near  the  present  site  of  Uniontown,  in  Pennsylvania,  at  the 
western  base  of  the  Laurel  Hill,  was  hardly  deemed  secure 
from  Indian  attack.  As  remote  from  the  eastern  settlements 
as  from  savage  danger,  they  were  destitute  of  supplies  and  the 
necessaries  of  life,  except  what  the  wilderness  itself  afforded* 
This  resource  was  scanty  indeed,  amid  the  howling  blasts  of 
an  inclement  winter;  and  famine  seemed  to  covet  what  had 
been  wrested  from  the  vengeance  of  the  Indian. 

A  few  days  had  been  sufficient  to  prove  that  the  alarm  was 
not  without  cause.  The  Indians  immediately  had  commenced 
the  warfare  by  detached  parties,  scouring  the  whole  country, 
murdering  the  remaining  inhabitants,  and  laying  waste  every 
settlement  within  one  day's  march  of  the  Ohio  River.f     The 

*  Butler's  Kentacky,  Introduction,  p.  56. 

t  The  Indian  "  declaration  of  war"  was  made  by  Logan  himself,  on  the  21st  of  July, 
1774,  in  company  with  a  party  of  eight  warriors.  Having  advanced  into  the  settle- 
ments on  the  Upper  Monongahela,  and  having  killed  one  man  and  taken  two  prisoners 
on  the  12th  of  July,  he  returned  on  the  2lBt,  and  left  at  tlie  house  of  William  Robinson, 
whose  family  had  been  murdered,  "  the  war  club,"  to  which  was  attached  a  note,  writ- 
ten by  B  white  prisoner  who  had  been  adopted  into  Logan's  family,  in  the  following 
words,  viz. : 

"  Captain  Cresap — 

"  Why  did  you  kill  my  people  on  Yellow  Creek  ?  The  white  people  killed  my  kin 
at  Conestago  a  great  while  ago,  and  I  thought  nothing  of  that.  But  you  have  killed 
my  kin  again  on  Yellow  Creek,  and  took  my  cousin  prisoner.  Then  I  thought  I  must 
kill  too ;  and  I  have  been  three  times  to  war  since :  but  the  Indians  are  not  angry ;  it 
is  only  myself.  Captain  John  Logan. 

"July  21,  1774." 
—See  American  Pioneer,  vol.  i.,  p.  18. 


374 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  Ilf. 


colonial  Legislature  of  Virginia  was  in  session,  when  it  was 
electrified  by  an  express  from  the  "  District  of  West  Augusta," 
near  the  Ohio  River,  apprising  them  that  an  "  Indian  war"  had 
already  been  commenced ;  that  the  tomahawk  and  scalping- 
knife  were  already  doing  their  bloody  work  upon  the  frontier 
people. 

Provision  was  to  be  immediately  made  for  the  emergency. 
Lord  Dunmore,  governor  of  the  province  of  Virginia,  lost  no 
time  in  delay,  but  immediately  put  in  operation  a  system  of 
defense  for  arresting  Indian  hostilities  upon  the  settlements. 
A  powerful  and  vigorous  campaign  was  planned  for  the  inva- 
sion of  the  Indian  country  west  of  the  Ohio.  Orders  were  im- 
mediately sent  to  General  Andrew  Lewis,*  of  Botetourt  coun- 
ty, to  raise  with  all  possible  dispatch  four  regiments  of  militia 
and  volunteers  from  the  southwestern  counties,  to  rendezvous 
at  Camp  Union,  in  the  Greenbrier  country.  This  was  to  be 
the  "  Southern  Division"  of  the  invading  army,  and  General 
Andrew  Lewis,  a  veteran  in  the  French  war,  was  commander. 
He  was  ordered  to  march  down  the  Great  Kenhawa  to  the 
bank  of  the  Ohio,  and  there  to  join  the  "  Northern  Division," 
under  the  earl  in  person.  In  the  mean  time,  Lord  Dunmore  was 
actively  engaged  in  raising  troops  in  the  northern  counties 
west  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  to  advance  from  Fort  Cumberland,  by 
way  of  Redstone  Old  Fort,  to  the  Ohio  at  Pittsburgh,  whence 
he  was  to  descend  in  boats  to  the  Kenhawa.  This  was  the 
original  plan  of  the  campaign. 

While  these  plans  were  maturing  under  the  provincial  au- 
thorities in  the  eastern  portion  of  Virginia,  by  command  of  the 
royal  governor.  General  Angus  M'Donald  had  been  organizing 
the  western  people  on  the  Youghiogeny  and  Monongahela  for 
their  own  defense.  Agreeably  to  the  orders  of  Lord  Dunmore, 
General  M'Donald  had.  collected  a  body  of  four  hundred  vol- 
unteers, who  made  their  rendezvous  at  Wheeling  Creek,  in 


*  General  Lewis  was  one  of  the  most  experienced  and  efficient  provincial  command' 
ers  that  Virginia  had  yet  produced.  Such  was  tlie  high  opinion  tirhich  General  Wash- 
ington entertained  of  his  military  abilities,  that  he  recommended  him  as  a  suitable  per- 
son to  fill  the  office  of  commander-in-chief  of  the  Revolutionary  armies,  which  was  ten- 
dered to  himself.  He  had  been  a  captain  in  the  detacliment  under  Washington  at 
Littlo  Meadows  in  1754.  He  was  also  a  companion  of  Washington  in  the  fatal  cam- 
paign under  General  Braddock,  in  1753 ;  he  commanded  the  detachment  of  Virginians 
which,  in  1758,  rescued  Major  Grant's  regiment  of  Highlanders  from  complete  annihila- 
tion, when  the  latter  was  so  signally  defeated  on  the  heights  above  Fort  Duqaesne. — 
See  Hall's  Sketches  of  the  West,  vol.  i.,  p.  204. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


375 


June.  From  this  point  it  was  resolved  to  invade  the  Indian 
country  upon  the  head  waters  of  the  Muskingum  River,  and  to 
destroy  the  Wappatomica  towns  situated  on  the  river,  about 
sixteen  miles  below  the  junction  of  the  Tuscarawa  and  Wal- 
honding,  within  the  present  State  of  Ohio.  The  little  army 
thus  collected  descended  the  Ohio  to  the  mouth  of  Captina 
Creek,  and  thence  proceeded  by  the  most  direct  route  west- 
wardly  to  the  Indian  towns.  The  march  was  irregular,  and 
discipline  was  but  feebly  enforced.  A  few  days  brought  them 
near  the  object  of  the  expedition.  Within  six  miles  of  the  In- 
dian town,  while  the  army  were  carelessly  advancing,  they 
were  assailed  by  about  fifty  Indian  warriors  in  ambuscade,  and 
thrown  into  some  confusion.  A  skirmish  ensued,  and  the  In- 
dians fled,  with  the  loss  of  one  warrior  killed,  besides  several 
wounded.  The  wtiites, having  lost  two, men  killed  and  eight 
wounded,  pressed  forward  to  the  towns,  and  found  them  de- 
serted. But  the  Indians  had  only  retired  across  the  river  and 
laid  an  ambuscade  for  their  invaders.  By  a  fortunate  acci- 
dent, this  was  discovered  by  the  whites,  who  thus  escaped  a 
disastrous  defeat.  Light  skirmishes  with  detached  parties 
comprised  the  subsequent  offensive  operations  of  this  expedi- 
tion. The  Indians  from  these  towns  at  length  having  sued  for 
peace,  the  commander  of  the  expedition  granted  their  request, 
upon  the  surrender  of  five  chiefs  as  hostages.  Of  these,  two 
escaped  soon  afterward. 

The  commander, finding  he  would  be  short  of  provisions, 
burned  the  Indian  towns,  destroyed  the  fields  of  growing  corn, 
and  returned  with  the  utmost  dispatch  to  Wheeling.* 

Such  was  the  result  of  this  half-organized  expedition,  and 
such  had  been  its  effects  upon  the  Indians  on  the  Muskingum, 
that  hostile  parties  infested  the  march  of  the  retreating  army, 
causing  every  kind  of  annoyance,  and  inflicting  the  most  cruel 
barbarities  upon  such  persons  as  fell  into  their  hands.  The 
pursuit  by  marauding  parties  of  the  Indians  continued  almost 
to  the  very  banks  of  the  Ohio.  Thus  ended  the  first  military 
movement  of  this  iniquitous  war,  serving  to  exasperate  rather 
than  to  subdue  the  Indians. 

During  the  summer,  the  operations  of  the  western  emigrants 
in  exploring  the  country,  making  improvements  and  locations 
of  land  on  the  east  and  south  side  of  the  Ohio,  were  completely 

*  Doddridge's  Nutes,  p.  341,  243,  343.    Butler's  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  57. 


376 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  III. 


liL 


f 


checked  by  the  outbreak  of  Indian  hostilities.  Those  who  had 
advanced  into  the  wilderness  near  the  Ohio,  and  into  the  region 
on  the  Kentucky  River,  had  retired  into  the  more  secure  sit- 
uations, or  had  taken  an  active  part  in  the  military  operations 
in  progress.  Among  the  latter  were  many  of  the  first  settlers" 
of  Kentucky,  who  were  engaged  as  scouts  and  rangers  upon 
the  exposed  settlements  on  the  Monongahela  and  Upper  Ohio, 
or  had  connected  themselves  with  the  army  preparing  on  the 
Greenbrier  under  General  Lewis.  Among  the  brave  frontier 
men  engaged  in  the  defense  of  the  settlements  were  Major 
George  Rogers  Clark,  Robert  Patterson,  and  Simon  Kenton, 
who  afterward  became  distinguished  soldiers  of  Kentucky. 
Besides  these,  were  many  others  equally  meritorious,  who  were 
then  just  entering  upon  their  career  of  usefulness  and  military 
service  in  Kentucky. ,  * 

Daniel  Boone,  the  fearless  woodsman  and  pioneer  of  Ken- 
tucky, had  been  engaged  in  June  to  advance,  accompanied  by 
Michael  Stoner,  his  sole  companion,  from  the  banks  of  the 
Clinch  River,  through  a  trackless  wilderness,  a  distance  of  four 
hundred  miles,  to  "  the  falls"  of  Ohio,  to  conduct  a  party  of  sur- 
veyors and  explorers  into  the  older  settlements  of  Virginia. 
This  service  he  had  performed  at  the  request  of  Lord  Dunmore, 
making  the  whole  trip  of  eight  hundred  miles  in  sixty-two  days, 
without  any  accident  or  loss.  After  performing  this  duty,  and 
after  conducting  the  surveyors  and  others  safely  to  the  set- 
tlements, he  joined  the  southern  division  of  the  army  under  Gen- 
eral Lewis,  and  marched  to  the  mouth  of  the  Kenhawa.* 

In  the  mean  time.  General  Lewis,  having  collected  at  Camp 
Union  three  regimentsf  of  volunteers  and  militia  from  the  coun- 
ties of  Augusta,  Botetourt,  and  Fincastle,  set  out  on  the  11th 
day  of  September  upon  his  march  for  the  designated  point  of 
rendezvous.  Colonel  Williamson,  with  another  regiment,  was 
to  follow  a  few  days  afterward. 

The  route  of  General  Lewis  lay  through  a  trackless  wilder- . 
ness  down  the  Valley  of  the  Kenhawa.  The  route  being  im- 
passable for  wagons,  the  whole  camp  equipage,  military  stores, 
provisions,  and  even  the  sick,  were  conveyed  upon  the  backs 
of  pack-horses.  For  twenty-five  days  the  march  slowly  ad- 
vanced through  a  rugged  country,  where  a  pathway  had  never 


*  See  Butler'8  Kentucky,  p.  28.    Also,  Flint's  Life  of  Boone,  p.  88. 
t  American  Pioneer,  voL  i.,  p.  362. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPL 


377 


amp 
oun- 
11th 
It  of 
was 

Ider- . 

im- 
ores, 
lacks 

ad- 
lever 


been  opened.  At  tlie  head  of  a  pioneer  party,  Captain  Ar- 
buckle,  the  only  white  man  who  had  ever  traversed  these  wild 
and  romantic  regions,  advanced  as  their  guide  through  this 
dreary  wilderness.  The  route  led  over  rugged  mountains, 
through  deep  defiles  and  mountain  gorges,  until  they  reached 
the  Valley  of  the  Lower  Kenhawa.  At  length  the  tedious 
march  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  miles  was  completed,  and  the 
army  encamped  on  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  on  the  6th  of  Octo- 
ber.* The  point  selected  for  the  camp  was  the  peninsula 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Kenhawa,  upon  the  site  of  the 
present  town  of  Point  Pleasant. 

The  march  had  been  a  laborious  one,  and  the  privations  of 
the  gallant  army  had  been  extreme.  During  the  whole  route, 
such  had  been  the  scarcity  of  provisions,  that  select  hunters  had 
been  kept  out  on  daily  service,  in  order  to  add  the  flesh  of  the 
elk,  the  bear,  and  the  deer  to  their  scanty  allowance.  At  the 
mouth  of  the  Kenhawa  they  had  expected  to  receive  a  plenti- 
ful supply  from  Fort  Pitt,  with  the  "  northern  division"  under 
Lord  Dunmore.  But  here  they  were  doomed  to  disappoint- 
ment and  new  dangers  in  a  region  infested  with  hostile  sav- 
ages. Lord  Dunmore  had  not  arrived  with  his  division,  nor 
had  supplies  been  forwarded  by  him. 

In  obedience  to  his  orders,  General  Lewis  remained  in  camp ; 
but,  having  no  intelligence  from  his  lordship,  he  dispatched 
messengers  up  the  Ohio  in  search  of  his  encampment,  or  of 
such  information  as  could  be  obtained.  Select  parties  of  hunt- 
ers were  kept  constantly  on  duty  to  supply  food  for  the  troops, 
who  were  already  suftering  from  short  allowance. 

At  length,  on  the  9th  of  October,  three  messengers  from  the 
commander-in-chief  arrived  in  camp.  From  them  General 
Lewis  ascertained  that  his  lordship  had  duly  arrived  at  Wheel- 
ing, where  he  had  concluded  to  change  his  plan  of  operations. 
He  had  now  determined  to  descend  the  Ohio  in  boats  and 
barges  to  the  mouth  of  Hocking  River,  and  there  erect  a 
stockade  fort  for  the  protection  of  the  sick,  the  military  stores, 
and  boats,  under  a  suitable  guard.  To  this  point  General  Lewis 
was  ordered  to  march,  while  his  lordship,  with  the  northern 
division,  would  ascend  the  Hocking  River  to  "  the  falls,"  and 

*  American  Pioneer,  p.  361.  Doddridge  says  it  web  the  10th  of  October  instead  of 
the  6th.  For  an  account  of  Qeneral  Lewis's  expedition  from  "  Camp  Union,"  see  Hall's 
Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p.  199. 


378 


HISTORY    OP   TUB 


[book  iir. 


thence,  marching  across  the  dividing  ridges  to  the  Scioto  Val- 
ley, would  advance  to  the  Shawanese  towns  on  that  river. 
General  Lewis  was  ordered  to  join  the  main  army  with  his  di- 
vision, near  the  lower  Shawanese  towns  on  the  Scioto. 

The  force  commanded  by  General  Lewis  was  about  twelve 
hundred  men  of  every  kind,  including  two  companies  of  Col- 
onel Christian's  regiment,  which  had  joined  the  main  body  at 
"  the  Point."  Colonel  Christian,  with  about  three  hundred  men, 
had  encamped  about  half  a  day's  march  in  the  rear. 

Next  morning,  about  daylight,  two  privates,  who  had  been 
out  hunting  before  day,  fell  in  with  a  large  body  of  hos- 
tile Indians,  who  were  about  two  miles  above  the  camp,  and 
marching  directly  for  it.  One  of  these  men  was  killed  by  the 
fire  from  the  Indians,  the  other  escaped  to  the  camp.*  The 
alarm  was  instantly  given,  and  the  troops  were  put  in  motion. 
This  timely  notice  saved  the  army  from  a  disastrous  defeat. 
A  few  moments  afterward,  two  other  scouts  or  hunters  came 
flying  to  camp,  and  confirmed  the  statement  of  the  first,  de- 
claring that  they  had  "  seen  a  body  of  Indians  covering  five 
acres  of  ground,  as  closely  as  they  could  stand."  The  truth  of 
this  statement  could  not  long  remain  in  doubt,  for  the  Indians 
were  pressing  forward  to  the  attack. 

The  only  salvation  for  the  whole  army  depended  upon  the 
firmness  of  the  commander  and  the  courage  of  his  troops. 
General  Lewis  was  equal  to  the  occasion,  and  his  troops  were 
a  full  match  for  the  Indians  themselves.  Two  detachments, 
under  Colonels  Flemming  and  Charles  Lewis,  were  immedi- 
ately ordered  forward  to  meet  the  enemy  and  break  the  force 
of  his  assault  upon  the  camp.  These  detachments  had  not  pro- 
ceeded more  than  four  hundred  yards,  when  they  encountered 
the  enemy  advancing  upon  them  in  two  parallel  lines  near  the 
bank  of  the  Ohio.  The  engagement  was  immediately  opened 
by  a  tremendous  fire  from  the  savages,  and  tlie  detachments, 
being  closely  pressed,  began  to  fall  back.  At  this  critical  mo- 
ment. Colonel  Fields  brought  his  regiment  into  action  in  gal- 
lant style,  and  checked  the  advance  of  the  Indian  line. 

General  Lewis  had  been  prompt  in  his  arrangements  for  de- 

*  These  two  men  belonged  to  Captain  RaBdel's  company,  and  to  Colonel  Christian's 
regiment.  The  other  two  belonged  to  Cap<f;..ii  ^van  Shelby's  company,  also  of  Colonel 
Christian's  regiment,  the  only  two  corner  i>i>:H  of  his  regiment  engaged  in  the  battle. 
The  latter  two  privates  were  James  Robertson  and  Valentine  Sevier,  subsequently 
distinguished  in  the  settlement  of  Tennessee. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VAI.I-EY    OP   THE    MISSISSIFPI. 


379 


1  for  de- 

bbristian's 
kf  Colonel 
khe  battle. 
Isequently 


fense,  and  the  whole  army  was  soon  formed,  ready  for  action. 
The  first  and  second  lines  were  promptly  supported  by  the  main 
line,  and  the  action  soon  became  general  and  furious. 

In  the  first  onset,  the  sun  had  just  risen  above  the  horizon, 
when  the  terrific  yells  of  the  savages  and  their  destructive  fire 
indicated  the  deadly  nature  of  the  contest  before  them.  Colo- 
nels Flemming  and  Lewis  valiantly  encouraged  their  men  to 
maintain  the  contest,  while  the  incessant  fire  of  the  Indians  was 
spreading  death  through  their  ranks  at  every  moment.  The 
main  line  advanced,  and  the  Indians  in  turn  began  to  recoil  and 
to  fall  back.  But  Colonels  Flemming  and  Lewis  had  been 
mortally  wounded  in  the  first  assault,  although  they  refused  to 
leave  the  field  until  the  main  line  came  to  their  relief. 

The  Indians,  extending  their  line  entirely  across  the  peninsu- 
la, from  the  Ohio  to  the  Kenhawa,  took  position  behind  a  rude 
breast-work  of  trees,  old  logs,  and  bushes,  previously  formed, 
and  continued  the  deadly  strife  with  unwavering  courage. 

In  this  condition, the  gallant  Virginians,  cut  off  from  retreat 
on  every  side,  and  pressed  by  a  powerful  enemy  in  front, 
maintained  their  position  until  evening.  The  battle  had  raged 
with  unprecedented  fury  and  obstinucy,  each  line  alternately 
receding  or  advancing  as  the  fate  of  war  seemed  to  balance 
between  the  two  armies,  until  evening  was  far  advanced,  and 
the  sun  was  just  above  the  western  horizon.  Ten  hours  had 
the  rifle  been  doing  its  murderous  work  in  the  hands  of  the 
unerring  savage,  and  the  no  less  skillful  marksmen  of  West- 
ern Virginia.  The  whole  plain  was  strewed  with  the  dead 
and  wounded  enemies,  strangely  commingled  where  they  had 
fallen,  as  each  line  advanced  and  had  been  alternately  driven 
back.  The  forest-trees  which  covered  the  field  of  carnage 
presented  on  every  side  numerous  signs  of  the  leaden  messen- 
gers of  death,  which  had  passed  like  a  hailstorm  between  the 
contending  armies.  Thus  had  the  battle  raged  with  equal 
success,  until  the  sun  began  to  decline  behind  the  western 
hills,  when  General  Lewis  ordered  three  companies*  to  ad- 
vance up  the  Kenhawa  River,  under  the  shelter  of  the  bank 
and  undergrowth,  until  they  had  gained  the  rear  of  the  In- 

*  These  were  the  companies  of  Captains  Isaac  Shelby,  George  Mathews,  and  John 

Stewart.    At  the  beginning  of  tlie  battle,  Isaac  Shelby  was  lieutenant  in  his  father's 

company ;  but  his  father  having  taken  command  on  the  death  of  his  colonel,  early  in  the 

^  engagement,  Isaac  advanced  to  the  command  of  his  company. — American  Pioneer,  voL 

i.,  p.  381-383. 


380 


HISTORY    OF   THB 


[book  III. 


dian  line.  From  that  point  they  were  to  pour  an  incessant 
fire  upon  the  enemy's  rear,  while  their  fire  would  be  a  signal 
for  renewed  efforts  by  their  fellow-soldiers  in  the  main  line. 
This  order  having  been  executed  with  great  promptness  and 
ardor,  the  savages,  panic-stricken  at  the  terrible  fire  in  their 
rear,  and  believing  that  they  were  now  attacked  by  the  whole 
of  Colonel  Christian's  re-enforcement,  fled  with  great  precipita- 
tion across  the  Ohio,  and  retreated  to  their  towns  sixty  miles 
up  the  Scioto. 

The  battle  of  the  Kenhawa,  or  of  "  the  Point,"  as  it  is  some- 
times designated,  has  by  general  consent  been  admitted  to  have 
been  one  of  the  most  sanguinary  and  well-contested  battles 
which  have  marked  the  annals  of  Indian  warfare  in  the  West. 
On  the  part  of  the  Virginians,  twelve  commissioned  officers  were 
killed  or  wounded,  seventy-five  non-commissioned  officers  and 
privates  were  killed,  and  one  huudi'ed  and  forty-one  were 
wounded.*  • 

The  greater  portion  of  Colonel  Christian's  regiment  did  not 
reach  the  field  of  battle  until  near  midnight,  when  their  pres- 
ence gave  security  to  the  repose  of  the  wearied  and  almost  ex- 
hausted troops  who  had  borne  the  heat  and  burden  of  battle, 
and  who  could  then  retire  to  rest,  leaving  their  wounded  and 
dying  companions  in  the  charge  of  their  friends. 

It  has  never  been  ascertained  what  was  the  force  of  the  In- 
dians engaged  in  this  battle,  or  what  was  their  entire  loss.  The 
field  of  battle  next  day  presented  twenty-one  Indian  bodies  left 
upon  the  ground,  besides  twelve  others  severely  wounded,  who 
had  concealed  themselves  among  the  brush  and  logs.  Many 
had  been  thrown  into  the  river  during  the  engagement,  and  it 
is  highly  probable  that  the  entire  Indian  loss  was  but  little  in- 
ferior to  that  of  the  whites. 

This  Indian  force  was  composed  of  the  flower  of  the  tribes 
inhabiting  the  present  State  of  Ohio,  commanded  by  the  most 
distinguished  chiefs  among  the  western  tribes.     Among  them 

*  Colonel  Charles  Lewii,  one  of  the  bravest  and  most  meritorions  oiBcera,  who  com- 
manded one  of  the  advanced  detachments,  was  mortally  wounded  early  in  the  engage- 
ment, but  he  continued  to  cheer  on  his  men  to  victory  until  he  was  removed  from  the  field. 
Colonel  Flemming  fell  severely  wounded  early  in  the  engagement,  but  continued  to  en- 
courage his  men  until  he  also  wes  carried  off  the  field.  Colonel  Fields,  a  valuable  of- 
ficer, was  killed  on  the  field  of  battle.  Captains  Buford,  Murray,  Ward,  Wilson,  and 
M'Lannahan  were  also  killed;  also  Lieutenants  Allen,  Ctoldsby,  Dillon,  and  several 
other  subaltern  officers. — See  Doddridge,  p.  331.  Also,  Thatcher's  Lives  of  the  Indians, 
voL  ii.,  p.  169, 170. 


III. 


A.D.  1774.] 


VALLEY    OF   TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


381 


was  "Cornstalk,"  the  great  Shawanese  war-chief,  who  was 
commander-in-chief,  aided  by  his  son  Ellinipsico,  Red  Hawk,  a 
Delaware,  Chiyawee,  a  Wyandot,  and  Logan,  a  Cayuga  chief.* 
Cornstalk  had  opposed  the  war,  and  had  advocated  a  truce  on 
the  eve  of  battle.  Being  overruled  by  his  associates  in  com- 
mand, he  sternly  declared,  "  Since  you  wilt  fight,  you  shall 
fight"  and  he  conducted  the  engagement  with  great  skill  and 
courage.  During  the  rsge  of  battle,  his  voice  was  frequently 
heard  above  the  din  of  war  and  amid  the  carnage,  cheering 
on  his  warriors  with  the  stern  command,  in  his  native  tongue, 
**  Be  strong!  he  strong P*  When  an  Indian  faltered  in  his  duty, 
Cornstalk  instantly  cut  him  down,  as  a  warning  to  others. 

A  few  days  were  required  for  the  troops  to  recruit  their  ex- 
hausted frames, and  restore  the  sick  and  wounded,  before  the 
division  could  be  placed  in  a  marching  condition. 

In  the  mean  time.  Lord  Dunmore,  with  nearly  twelve  hun- 
dred men,  had  descended  the  Ohio  from  Fort  Pitt,  in  one  hun- 
dred canoes  and  several  large  boats,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Hock- 
ing River,  where  he  had  erected  "  Fort  Gore,"  a  stockade  for 
the  protection  of  his  military  stores  and  the  invalids,  which 
were  left  in  charge  of  a  detachment  of  provincial  troops.  From 
this  point  he  ascended  the  Hocking  to  the  falls,  near  the  pres- 
ent town  of  Athens.  From  that  place  he  directed  his  march 
across  the  country  westward  to  the  Scioto,  where  he  encamp- 
ed within  a  few  miles  of  the  Shawanese  towns.  Here,  upon 
the  eastern  side  of  the  Scioto,  in  the  margin  of  the  Piqua  plains, 
near  Sippoo  Creek,  he  established  his  camp,  which  was  regu- 
larly environed  by  a  deep  ditch  encircling  twelve  acres  of 
ground.  Within  was  a  regular  stockade  inclosure,  in  the  cen- 
ter of  which  was  the  citadel,  or  headquarters,  comprising  about 
one  acre,  and  occupied  by  the  commander-in-chief  and  his  su- 
perior officers.  The  position,  thus  fortified,  was  called  "  Camp 
Charlotte,"  in  honor  of  the  British  queen.f 


10  com- 
ngage- 
le  field. 
Itoen- 
ble  of- 
in,  and 
everal 
dians, 


*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  61. 

t  Atwater's  History  of  Ohio,  p.  115.  There  has  been  some  difference  of  opinion  as 
to  the  locality  of  Camp  Charlotte;  but  recent  examinations  and  inquiries  by  the  "Lo- 
gan Historical  Society"  of  ChilUcothe  have  resulted  in  the  conviction  that  the  site  is 
comp;ised  in  a  tract  of  land  formerly  belonging  to  Mr.  Winship,  upon  Sippoo  Creek, 
live  miles  east  of  Westfall,  in  Ross  county,  Ohio. 

Mr.  Caleb  Atwater  says,  the  camp  was  within  three  miles  of  a  principal  Shawanese 
town ;  other  towns  were  within  one  day's  march.  The  site  of  the  present  town  of 
Frankfort,  formerly  "  Old  Town,"  or  old  ChilUcothe,  on  the  north  fork  pf  Paint  Creek, 
was  an  important  Shawanese  town  during  the  first  emigration  to  the  northwest  ride  of 


382 


HISTORY    OF    TUB 


[book  III. 


From  this  place,  as  headquarters,  the  Earl  sent  out  his  de- 
tachments against  different  towns  on  the  waters  of  the  Scioto, 
several  of  which  were  destroyed  and  burned.  Among  the  in- 
cursions made  by  these  detachments  was  one  under  Major 
William  Crawford,  with  three  hundred  men,  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  a  Mingo  town,*  which  was  attacked  with  great  energy, 
and  utterly  destroyed. 

Such  had  been  the  sanguinary  character  of  the  battle  of  the 
Kenhawa,  with  only  one  division  of  the  provincial  army,  which 
was  concentrating  upon  the  waters  of  the  Scioto,  that  the  In- 
dians declined  to  continue  the  contest  with  the  united  forces. 
Hence,  after  the  bloody  "  battle  of  the  Point,"  the  chiefs  lost 
no  time  in  making  overtures  of  peace  to  the  commander-in- 
chief,  before  the  arrival  of  the  vindictive  troops  under  General 
Lewis.  At  length,  after  repeated  overtures,  and  after  the  de- 
struction of  several  of  their  towns,  Lord  Dunmore  consented 
to  order  an  armistice,  preparatory  to  a  general  treaty  of  peace. 
In  the  mean  time,  every  preci?u*ion  was  taken  to  avoid  sur- 
prise and  the  danger  of  Indian  treachery.  But  the  southern 
division  little  thought  of  peace  until  they  had  again  faced  the 
enemy  in  the  field. 

Yet,  having  given  the  Indians  an  assurance  of  peace,  his 
lordship  dispatched  a  messenger  to  General  Lewis,  who  was 
advancing  with  his  division,  with  instructions  to  halt  and  en- 
camp until  further  orders,  and  to  observe  the  armistice  which 
had  been  proclaimed.  Smarting  under  their  recent  loss,  and 
burning  with  revenge  for  an  opportunity  to  inflict  severe  chas- 
tisement upon  their  enemies,  the  troops  of  General  Lewis's  di- 
vision received  the  order  with  surprise  and  indignation.    Gen- 

the  Ohio,  between  the  years  1786  and  1790.  This  town  was  probably  the  principal 
Shawanese  town,  which  was  nearest  Camp  Charlotte.  Mr.  Felix  Renick,  one  of  the 
early  settlers  and  pioneers  in  Ohio,  concurs  with  the  text.  He  locates  Lord  Dunmore's 
camp  on  Sippoo  Creek,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Scioto,  about  five  miles  south  of  Circle- 
ville  and  five  miles  east  of  Westfall.  Mr.  Renick  informs  us  that  h»  was  upon  the  site 
of  Lord  Dunmore's  camp,  as  well  as  that  of  General  Lewis,  in  the  year  1801,  before 
the  country  was  settled  by  white  men.  He  says  he  h&i  received  the  oral  testimony  of 
several  persons  who  were  in  the  campaign  under  Lord  Dunmure,  and  they  confirm  this 
location.  The  same  pioneer  locates  General  Lewis's  camp  upon  Congo  Creek,  a  branch 
of  Sippoo,  two  and  a  half  miles  distant  from  Camp  Charlotte. — See  American  Pioneer, 
vol.  i.,  p.  339-332 ;  also,  vol.  ii.,  p.  37-42.  The  earth-works  of  a  similar  camp  may  be 
seen  one  mile  above  Chillicothe,  on  the  Scioto. 

*  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  63.  The  term  "Mingo"  and  "Min- 
goes"  was  the  common  phrase  in  the  West  to  designate  any  or  all  of  the  tribes  con- 
stituting the  confederacy  of  the  "  Six  Nations."  A  "  Mingo  chief"  was  a  chief  of 
■ome  one  of  the  Six  Nations,  not  a  confederate. 


A.D.  1764.] 


VALLBY   .        Tilt     .KIHHIH    IPP|, 


388 


his 


eral  Lewis  refused  to  obey,  i  nd  prepan  i  to  continue  his  nmrcii. 
A  second  order  was  sent  by  a  second  !■  essenpi  '»hi»  wb'  U- 
rected  to  reiterate  the  same  peremptorily.  '1  order  .as 
again  disregarded  by  the  indignant  general,  w  continu*  .  hia 
march  toward  Camp  Charlotte.  Finally,  Lokj  l)unniiM-e  in 
person,  as  commander-in-chief,  hastened  to  meet  the  advuwiing 
troops,  and  personally,  in  presence  of  his  staff,  gave  General 
Lewis  a  peremptory  order  to  halt  and  encamp.  The  order 
was  then  reluctantly  obeyed. 

At  length  matters  were  arranged,  and  the  council  was  held 
in  the  center  of  the  camp,  or  in  the  "  citadel"  of  headquarters, 
into  which  only  eighteen  unarmed  chiefs  and  warriors  were 
admitted  at  any  one  time.*  The  council  having  been  convened, 
the  deliberations  were  opened  by  Cornstalk  in  a  short  and  en- 
ergetic speech,  delivered  with  great  dignity,  and  in  a  tone  so 
loud  as  to  be  heard  over  the  whole  camp,  as  if  designed  for  the 
whole  army.  "  He  recited  the  former  power  of  the  Indians, 
the  number  of  their  tribes,  compared  with  their  present  wretch- 
ed condition,  and  their  diminished  numbers  ;  he  referred  to  the 
treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix,  and  the  cessions  of  territory  then  made 
by  them  to  the  whites ;  to  the  lawless  encroachments  of  the 
whites  upon  their  lands,  contrary  to  all  treaty  stipulations ;  to 
the  patient  forbearance  of  the  Indians  for  years  under  wrongs 
exercised  toward  them  by  the  frontier  people.  He  said  the 
Indians  knew  their  weakness  in  a  contest  with  the  whites,  and 
they  desired  only  justice ;  that  the  war  was  not  sought  by  the 
Indians,  but  was  forced  upon  them ;  for  it  was  commenced  by 
the  whites  without  previous  notice ;  that,  under  the  circum- 
stances, they  would  have  merited  the  contempt  of  the  whites 
for  cowardice  if  they  had  failed  to  retaliate  the  unprovoked 
and  treacherous  murders  at  Captina  and  Yellow  Creeks ;  that 
the  war  was  the  work  of  the  whites,  for  the  Indians  desired 
peace." 

The  terms  of  peace  were  soon  arranged,  and  their  prisoners 
were  surrendered  into  the  hands  of  the  provincial  army.     But 


*  Atwatcr's  History  of  Ohio,  p.  114.  This  is  one  of  the  early  histories  of  Ohio,  by 
Caleb  Atwater.  It  contains  some  sketches  of  the  early  Iiistory  of  this  state,  loosely 
written  and  irregularly  arranged.  It  embraces  portions  of  the  natural  as  well  as  the 
political  history  of  Ohio  ;  but  it  has  been  compiled  with  so  little  attention  to  accuracy, 
that  it  con  not  be  depended  upon  unless  it  is  corroborated  by  other  authentic  history. 
Although  such  is  its  general  character,  it  is  useful  as  a  work  of  reference  relative  to 
matters  which  admit  of  but  little  discrepancy. 


384 


IIIHTORY    OP    TUB 


[rook  III. 


Logan,  the  Cayuga  chief,  Htill  indignant  at  the  murder  of  his 
family,  refused  to  attend  the  council,  or  to  bo  noun  as  a  suppli- 
ant among  the  other  chiefs. 

Yet  to  General  Clibson,*  who  was  sent  as  an  envoy  to  the 
Shawanese  towns,  after  a  private  interview,  and  "after  shed- 
ding abundance  of  tears,"  he  delivered  the  following  speech, 
which  was  committed  to  paper  for  Lord  Dunmore,  viz.:  "I 
appeal  to  any  white  man  to  say  if  ever  he  entered  Logan's 
cabin  hinigry,  and  he  gave  him  nothing  to  eat ;  if  ever  he  came 
cold  and  naked,  and  he  clothed  him  not.  During  the  course 
of  the  last  long  and  bloody  war,  Logan  remained  idle  in  his 
cabin,  an  advocate  for  peace.  Such  was  my  love  for  the 
whites,  that  my  countrymen  pointed  at  me  as  they  passed,  and 
said,  *  Logan  is  the  friend  of  white  men.'  I  had  even  thought 
to  have  lived  with  you,  but  for  the  injuries  of  one  man.  Cap- 
tain Cresap  the  last  spring,  in  cold  blood,  and  unprovoked,  mur- 
dered all  the  relations  of  Logan,  sparing  not  even  my  women 
and  children.  There  runs  not  a  drop  of  my  blood  in  the  veins 
of  any  living  creature.  This  called  on  me  for  revenge.  I  have 
sought  it ;  I  have  killed  many ;  I  have  fully  glutted  my  ven- 
geance. For  my  country,  I  rejoice  at  the  beams  of  peace ;  but 
do  not  harbor  a  thought  that  mine  is  the  joy  of  fear.  Logan 
never  felt  fear.  He  will  not  turn  on  his  heel  to  save  his  life. 
Who  is  there  to  mourn  for  Logan  ?     Not  one  !"f 

This  speech,  which  is  so  well  known  as  a  specimen  of  native 
eloquence,  is  the  condensed  version  given  by  Mr.  JefTerson  in 

*  General  Gibson  subsequently  took  an  active  part  in  the  Indian  war  on  the  west- 
cm  frontier,  from  the  Declaration  of  Independence  to  the  close  of  the  war  in  1784.  In 
an  atHdavit,  made  at  Pittsburgh  on  the  4th  of  April,  1800,  he  states  that  the  Indians 
sent  a  white  man,  by  the  name  of  £lliott  (probably  tlie  same  who  was  subsci]uently 
British  Indian  ai;cnt  on  the  Maumce),  to  meet  Lord  Dunmore  with  a  flag  of  truce  when 
within  iiflecn  miles  of  the  Shawanese  towns.  Subsequently,  General  Gibson,  being 
sent  as  an  envoy  tQ  the  Indian  towns,  saw  the  great  Cornstalk  and  Logan  in  a  con- 
ference. At  length  Logan  took  him  aside  to  a  copse  of  woods  at  a  short  distance,  and 
there,  "  after  shedding  abundance  of  tears,"  while  sitting  upon  a  log,  he  delivered  the 
speech,  which  is  so  well  known,  to  be  handed  to  Lord  Duumore. — Bee  American  Pi- 
oneer, vol.  i.,  p.  18,  19. 

t  See  Doddridge's  Notes.  In  the  speech  of  Logan  we  have  snbstitntcd  the  word 
"captain"  for  colonel,  as  there  were  two  persons  of  the  same  name,  the  father  and  the 
Bcm.  Colonel  Cresap,  the  father,  was  not  in  any  wise  implicated  in  the  Captina  or 
Yellow  Creek  murders.  Captain  Michael  Cresap,  commandant  of  Fort  Fincastle,  first 
instigated  the  tragedy  at  Captina;  but  he  was  not  with  the  party  at  Baker's  Bottom, 
by  whom  Logan'.s  family  was  killed.  Greathouse  and  Baker  wore  alone  chargeable 
for  this  murder. — See  American  Pioneer,  vol.  i., p.  14-18;  also,  p.  64,  &c'.  The  "last 
long  and  bloody  war"  alluded  to  was  Pontiac's  war  in  1763-4,  after  the  close  of  the 
French  war. 


A.D.  1775.] 


VAI.LBY    or   Till   MI8IIBBIPPI. 


385 


;he  word 
aiid  the 
ptiiia  or 
8tle, first 
Bottoni, 
argcablc 
he  "last 
10  of  the 


his  ♦♦Notes  on  Virginia,"  published  first  in  1784.  Other  ver- 
sions give  a  more  extended  copy,  with  some  additional  senti- 
ments, which  were  doubtless  contained  in  the  speech  delivered 
by  Logan  to  General  Gibson. 

The  principal  stipulations  on  the  part  of  the  Indians  in  the 
treaty  of  Camp  Charlotte  were,  besides  those  of  peace  and 
amity  generally,  that  they  should  surrender  into  the  hands  of 
the  whites,  within  a  specified  time,  all  the  prisoners  held  by 
them  in  captivity ;  that  they  should  abstain  from  all  hostilities 
against  the  frontier  settlements  east  and  southeast  of  the  Ohio 
River  ;  that  they  should  recognize  the  Ohio  River  as  the  proper 
boundary  between  the  white  population  and  the  Indian  hunt- 
ing-grounds ;  and  that  the  Indians  should  not  hunt  on  the  east 
and  southeast  side  of  the  Ohio. 

After  the  negotiations  of  the  treaty  had  been  concluded,  and 
the  prisoners  had  been  duly  surrendered,  presents  were  distrib- 
uted among  the  Indians  who  were  assembled  at  the  treaty,  and 
they  were  dismissed  with  the  smiles  of  the  royal  governor. 
Soon  afterward  the  troops  were  put  in  motion  for  the  post  of 
Fort  Pitt,  previous  to  their  return  to  their  respective  homes. 
They  were  soon  afterward  disbanded,  and  Lord  Dunmore 
returned  to  Williamsburg,  the  seat  of  the  provincial  govern- 
ment. 

[A.D.  1775.]  On  the  23d  of  January  following,  he  issued 
his  proclamation  announcing  the  ratification  of  the  treaty  of 
peace  with  the  Western  Indians.  He  gave  public  notice  that 
the  Indians  had  agreed  to  withdraw  their  hunting-parties  from 
the  lands  east  of  the  Ohio  River,  and  that  they  would  oflTer  no 
molestation  to  any  white  person  peaceably  ascending  or  de- 
scending the  Ohio.  All  emigrants  were  forewarned  against 
trespassing  upon  the  Indian  lands  on  the  west  side  of  the  river. 

Thus  was  the  Ohio  River,  for  the  first  time,  acknowledged 
hy  the  Indians  as  the  boundary  between  the  white  man's  terri- 
tory and  the  Indian  hunting-grounds. 

The  transactions  of  the  late  campaign  appear  to  have  laid 
the  foundation  for  all  the  bitter  feelings  and  outbreak  of  popular 
indignation  which  subsequently  caused  Lord  Dunmore  to  aban- 
don the  country,  and  seek  protection  on  board  his  majesty's 
fleet. 

Whether  any  just  grounds  existed  for  the  suspicion  or  not, 
it  was  believed  by  many,  and  probably  by  General  Lewis  and 

Vol.  I.— B  d 


386 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book   III. 


his  Virginia  troops,  that,  while  the  governor  was  at  Wheeling, 
about  the  first  of  October,  he  received  from  the  royal  govern- 
ment dispatches  instructing  him  to  terminate  the  war  speedily 
with  the  hostile  tribes,  and  to  make  such  terms  with  them  as 
might  secure  their  alliance  in  favor  of  England  against  the 
colonies,  in  case  the  growing  difficulties  with  them  should 
terminate  in  a  state  of  open  war.  General  Washington  and 
Chief-justice  Marshall,  it  is  affirmed,  never  ceased  to  believe 
that  such  were  his  orders,  and  that  his  conduct  was  dictated 
by  a  desire  to  secure  the  alliance  of  the  savages  against  the 
colonies,  whenever  hostilities  between  them  and  the  mother 
country  should  take  place.* 

Notwithstanding  the  difficulties  between  the  mother  country 
and  the  colonies  were  daily  increasing,  yet  the  spirit  of  west- 
ern emigration,  which  had  received  a  temporary  check  from 
the  late  Indian  war,  revived,  and  continued  to  lead  hundreds 
of  families  from  each  of  the  Middle  and  Southern  States  into 
the  regions  drained  by  the  tributaries  of  the  Ohio.  Although 
emigrants  were  crowding  into  the  country  now  comprised  in 
western  portions  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  yet  this  region 
did  not  limit  the  explorations  for  new  settlements.  Several 
hundred  miles  lower  down  the  Ohio,  iu  the  vicinity  of  the  falls, 
many  surveyors  and  explorers  had  penetrated  the  fertile  plains 
on  the  Kentucky  River  previous  to  the  late  Indian  war.  Dur- 
ing Indian  hostilities  they  had  been  compelled  to  abandon  these 
remote  regions,  and  to  retire  into  the  settled  portions  of  West- 
ern Virginia  and  Pennsylvania.  Now,  since  peace  was  restor- 
ed, the  former  explorers  and  surveyors  returned,  and  with  them 
new  adventurers,  to  seek  homes  and  settlements  to  which  they 
might  subsequently  remove  their  families.  A  small  cabin,  and 
an  acre  of  ground  in  cultivation,  gave  each  a  preference  right, 
which  he  might  leave  and  resume  at  pleasure.  This  was  the 
extent  of  improvement  required  by  the  provisions  of  the  act  of 
the  Virginia  Legislature,  and  gave  to  each  settler  a  settlement 
right  to  four  hundred  acres  of  land,  including  his  improvement. 
By  this  species  of  inchoate  title,  as  well  as  by  large  grants  from 
the  royal  governors,  and  by  military  land-warrants  of  different 
dates,  was  a  large  portion  of  Central  Kentucky  covered  before 
the  close  of  the  year  1775.  Most  of  the  settlement  rights, 
grants,  and  warrants  located  during  this  year  were  laid  upon 

*  Seo  Atwater'a  History  of  Ohio,  p.  118. 


A.D.  1775.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


387 


the  elevated  rolling  plains  which  extend  from  east  to  west  be- 
tween the  main  branches  of  Licking  and  Salt  Rivers,  but  espe- 
cially within  fifty  miles  of  the  Kentucky  River,  for  nearly  two 
hundred  miles  above  its  mouth.  Yet  there  had  been  no  fam- 
ilies introduced  into  Kentucky ;  all  were  pioneers  and  explor- 
ers, preparing  the  way  for  the  advance  of  subsequent  emigra- 
tion and  settlements.  Among  the  locations  were  many  large 
grants  from  the  royal  governor,  Lord  Dunmore. 

Among  the  prominent  pioneers  and  explorers  of  Kentucky, 
during  the  year  1775,  was  Colonel  John  Floyd,  a  surveyor  from 
Eastern  Virginia.  He  had  made  a  visit  of  exploration  to  Ken- 
tucky during  the  previous  year,  when  the  irruption  of  Indian 
hostilities  had  driven  in  the  remote  settlers.  He  now  returned 
to  the  West,  to  pursue  his  vocation  as  a  surveyor,  in  locating 
claims  and  land-warrants,  and  to  select  for  himself  a  permanent 
home  for  future  residence.  For  himself  he  made  a  location 
within  six  miles  of  "  the  falls"  of  the  Ohio,  and  established  his 
"  camp"  on  Bear-grass  Creek,  at  a  place  subsequently  knowTi 
as  "  Floyd's  Station." 

Among  the  hundreds  of  settlers  who  were  now  pressing 
forward  into  Kentucky,  none,  more  than  Colonel  Floyd,  were 
endowed  with  that  courage  and  perseverance  so  indispensable 
to  a  frontier  life ;  and  he  soon  proved  himself  a  useful  and 
valuable  member  of  the  new  and  growing  settlements  in  this 
quarter.  Such  was  the  state  of  emigration  and  settlement  in 
this  portion  of  Western  Virginia. 

In  the  southern  portion  of  Virginia  and  in  the  adjacent  prov- 
ince of  North  Carolina  the  tide  of  western  emigration  was 
equally  strong.  People  from  the  older  settlements  were  press- 
ing forward  in  great  numbers  upon  the  numerous  branches  of 
the  Clinch,  on  the  southeast  side  of  the  Cumberland  Mountains. 
The  pioneers  in  this  region  were  anxious  to  advance  beyond 
the  Cumberland  Mountains  into  the  unexplored  regions  which 
had  been  discovered  upon  the  waters  of  the  Cumberland  River 
and  upon  the  tributaries  of  the  Kentucky  River.  This  region 
as  yet  had  been  but  little  explored  by  emigrants  and  pioneers. 
It  was  nearly  fifty  miles  south  of  the  principal  locations  made 
on  the  Kentucky  River,  and  within  the  limits  of  the  Cherokee 
hunting-grounds.  It  had  never  been  relinquished  to  the  whites, 
and  the  Indians  were  jealous  of  any  advances  made  by  them 
west  of  the  Cumberland  Mountains.     Those  who  ventured  upon 


388 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


the  forbidden  territory  found  death  the  forfeiture  of  their  te- 
merity. To  gain  a  footing  in  this  region,  the  permission  of  the 
Cherokees  must  be  obtained.  The  attempt  of  Daniel  Boone  to 
introduce  a  colony  without  their  consent  had  been  signally  re- 
buked two  years  before. 

In  view  of  this  prerequisite,  associations  of  influential  men 
and  capitalists  were  formed  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina, 
for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  the  Indian  title  to  these  lands  by 
treaty  and  purchase.  Early  in  the  spring  of  1774,  Patrick 
Henry,  with  the  Hon.  William  Byrd,  John  Page,  Esq.,  and 
Colonel  William  Christian,  had  contemplated  the  purchase  of 
the  lands  south  of  the  Kentucky  River  from  the  Cherokees. 
But  Indian  hostilities  on  the  Ohio,  and  political  difficulties  with 
the  royal  government,  added  to  the  uncertainty  of  the  royal 
confirmation  to  any  title  obtained  by  individuals  treating  with 
the  Indian  tribes,  prevented  the  consummation  of  their  designs.* 

A  project  of  the  same  character  was  undertaken  soon  after- 
ward by  Colonel  Richard  Henderson  and  other  influential  men 
of  Hillsborough,  in  North  Carolina.  Their  plans  were  also  de- 
ferred until  the  close  of  Lord  Dunmore's  Indian  war. 

Yet  Daniel  Boone  had  not  been  discouraged  by  the  failure 
of  his  attempt  to  introduce  a  colony  upon  the  south  side  of  the 
Kentucky  River  in  the  fall  of  1773.  He  still  resolved  to  take 
possession  of  the  beautiful  regions  west  of  Cumberland  Gap, 
but  not  without  the  consent  of  the  Cherokees.f  In  his  first  at- 
tempt he  had  lost  his  son  and  several  of  his  neighbors  by  his 
rash  advance  into  the  Indian  territory,  and  he  was  unwilling  to 
incur  the  same  danger  again.  Measures  were  taken,  accord- 
ingly, to  conciliate  the  favor  and  consent  of  the  Cherokees  J 
previous  to  a  second  advance. 

Soon  after  the  close  of  the  late  Indian  war  upon  the  Ohio, 
Daniel  Boone  had  urged  upon  Colonel  Richard  Henderson,  of 
North  Carolina,  and  others,  who  were  anxious  to  settle  a  colo- 
ny south  of  the  Kentucky  River,  the  propriety  of  obtaining  the 
consent  of  the  Cherokees  by  formal  purchase :  hence  Colonel 

*  Hall's  Sketches  of  tlie  West,  vol.  i.,  p.  249. 

t  The  country  on  the  north,  as  well  as  on  the  soath  side  of  the  Cumberland  River, 
had  been  the  residence  and  the  hunting-grounds  of  the  Chouanoes,  or  Shawanese ;  and 
the  Comberland  River  had  been  known  to  the  French  as  the  River  of  the  Chouanoes, 
or  Shawanese,  for  many  years  after  the  Shawanese  were  expelled  by  the  Cherokees, 
which  was  between  the  years  1715  and  1718.  It  had  now  been  iu  the  possession  of 
the  Cherokees  for  fifty-five  years. 

I  Butler's  Historj'  of  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  66.  Also,  the  Life  of  Daniel  Boone, 
by  Timothy  Flint,  p.  83,  83. 


A.D.  1775.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISSIPPL 


389 


River, 
se ;  and 
DuanocB, 
erokees, 
ssion  of 

il  Boopo, 


Henderson,  and  several  other  men  of  capital  and  enterprise, 
formed  themselves  into  a  company*  for  the  purchase  and  set- 
tlement of  the  country  west  of  Cumberland  Gap.  Soon  after- 
ward, Colonel  Henderson  and  Colonel  Nathaniel  Hart,  in  com- 
pany with  the  hunter  and  woodsman,  Daniel  Boone,  proceeded 
to  the  Cherokee  towns,  and  proposed  a  general  council  to  be 
held  in  the  spring,  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  the  Indian 
title  to  the  lands  lying  between  the  Cumberland  and  Kentucky 
Rivers.  Arrangements  were  accordingly  made  for  convening 
a  general  council  in  the  following  spring  of  1775. 

Subsequently,  on  the  17th  of  March,  a  treaty  was  concluded 
and  signed  by  Richard  Henderson,  Nathaniel  Hart,  and  J.  Lut- 
trell,  agents  for  the  company,  on  the  one  part,  and  by  certain 
chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  Cherokee  nation  on  the  other  part, 
at  the  "  Sycamore  Shoals"  of  the  Watauga  River,  within  the 
present  limits  of  Carter  county,  in  East  Tennessee.  Twelve 
hundred  Indians  are  said  to  have  been  assembled  on  the  treaty 
ground. 

By  this  treaty  the  Indians  agreed  to  cede  and  relinquish  to 
Richard  Henderson  and  his  associates  all  the  lands  lying  between 
the  Kentucky  and  Cumberland  Rivers,  from  their  sources  to 
their  mouths  respectively.  In  consideration  of  this  cession,  it 
is  alleged  that  ten  thousand  pounds  sterling  in  goods  had  been 
duly  paid  before  the  signing  of  the  treaty.f 

But  the  treaty  having  been  made  and  entered  into  by  private 
individuals,  without  any  authority  from  the  States  of  Virginia 
or  North  Carolina,  was  in  itself  null  and  void,  so  far  as  it 
claimed  to  vest  the  title  of  lands  in  those  individuals  ;  for  at  that 
early  date  the  colonial  government  claimed  the  sole  power  to 
treat  with  the  Indian  tribes,  and  to  purchase  their  lands,  as  one 
of  the  prerogatives  of  sovereignty. 

Yet  the  company,  regardless  of  consequences,  proceeded  to 
take  possession  of  their  unlawful  purchase.  The  new  colony 
was  to  be  known  and  designated  as  "  Transylvania  in  Amer- 
ica." No  efforts  or  means  were  spared  to  induce  emigrants 
to  make  permanent  settlements.  The  spirit  of  emigration  from 
North  Carolina  and  Virginia  was  active,  and  pioneers  were 
anxious  to  lead  the  way  in  locating  a  colony. 

*  This  land  company  consisted  of  the  following  persons,  viz. :  Richard  Henderson, 
Thomas  Hart,  John  Williams,  James  Hogg,  Nathaniel  Hart,  David  Hart,  Leonard  H. 
Bullock,  John  Luttrell,  and  William  Johnstou. 

t  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  67,  68.    See,  also.  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p.  S50,  351. 


390 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  III. 


Daniel  Boone,  with  a  party  of  about  twenty  hunters  and 
woodsmen,  was  sent  in  advance,  to  open  and  blaze  a  road 
from  Holston  River,  through  the  southern  wilderness,  to  the 
Kentucky  River,  north  of  the  present  town  of  Richmond,  in 
Madison  county,  Kentucky.  They  had  proceeded  on  the 
route  with  their  labor  until  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  termi- 
nation, when  they  were  attacked  by  a  party  of  Indians,  who 
killed  two  of  their  number  and  wounded  two  others.  On  the 
23d  of  March  they  were  again  attacked  by  another  party  of  In- 
dians, who  killed  two  more  of  their  number  and  wounded  three 
others.  A  few  days  afterward,  Boone  and  the  remainder  of  his 
party,  in  all  sixteen  men,  arrived  on  the  bank  of  the  Kentucky 
River,  and  prepared  immediately  to  erect  a  "  station,"  or  for- 
tified village.  This  work  was  commenced  on  the  first  day  of 
April,  and  progressed  steadily  until  the  first  of  June,  when  it 
was  urged  to  completion,  under  the  immediate  superintend- 
ence of  Colonel  Henderson. 

In  the  mean  time,  Colonel  Henderson,  by  the  way  of  Pow- 
ell's Valley,  had  arrived  with  forty  armed  men  and  forty  pack- 
horses,  besides  many  adventurers  who  sought  the  protection  of 
such  a  numerous  caravan  to  the  west.  This  colony,  having 
)«^ft  Powell's  Valley  in  April,  had  arrived  upon  the  banks  of 
the  Kentucky  River  early  in  May. 

Shortly  afterward,  Boone,  leaving  the  fort  in  charge  of  Colo- 
nel Henderson  and  his  companions,  set  out  upon  his  return  to 
the  Holston  settlements  for  his  family,  and  such  emigrants  as 
were  inclined  to  accompany  him  to  the  new  settlement.  In  the 
autumn  he  conducted  his  family,  with  a  few  others,  through 
the  wilderness  to  the  banks  of  the  Kentucky  River.  They 
took  up  their  residence  in  the  *'  station,"  which  had  now  been 
called  "  Boonesborough,"  a  name  which  the  place  retains  to 
this  day.  Daniel  Boone's  wife  and  two  daughters  may  be  con- 
sidered the  first  white  women  who  made  their  residence  in 
Kentucky. 

Soon  afterward,  Colonel  Calloway  and  his  family,  with  a  few 
other  emigrants,  arrived  at  Boonesborough,  and  the  population 
increased  from  day  to  day  by  the  arrival  of  other  pioneer  set- 
tlers and  adventurers,  who  made  their  residence  at  or  near  this 
station.*  Such  was  the  beginning  of  the  first  settlement  in 
Kentucky,  on  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Boonesborough. 

*  Bee  Life  of  Boone,  p.  83,    This  is  a  small  duodecimo  volume  of  2S0  pages,  com- 


The  following  sketch  of  the  fortified  station  of  Boonesboroagh  will  give  the  reader 
nil  Idea  of  the  general  character  of  "stations"  for  the  protection  of  the  surrounding 
settlements  during  Indian  hostilities.  It  ii  taken  from  Judge  HaU's  "  Sketches  of  the 
West." 


The  outline  of  the  inclosure  was  S50  feet  from  north  to 
south,  and  165  feet  from  east  to  west.  Besides  the  comer 
buildings,  erected  for  the  proprietors,  the  stockade  com- 
prised twenty-eight  log  cabins,  about  18  feet  square,  for  the 
use  of  families  pertaining  to  the  colony.  The  outside  wall 
of  each  was  built  up  close,  and  was  made  bullet-proof,  without  doors  or  windows,  and 
raised  12  feet  in  height,  from  which  the  roof,  with  a  single  slope,  declined  to  the  inner 
wall,  8  feet  high :  the  doors  and  window-openings  were  wholly  within  the  stockade : 
the  fronts  of  the  cabins  all  faced  the  central  area,  or  common  yard.  Two  secure  gate- 
ways, on  opposite  sides,  guarded  the  entrance. 


A.D.  1775.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MlSSISSIPPf. 


303 


The  lawless  character  of  the  "  Treaty  of  the  Watauga,"  and 
the  purchase  of  Transylvania,  did  not  escape  the  watchful  eye 
of  Governor  Dunmore.  No  sooner  had  he  been  apprised  ot 
the  facts,  than  he  issued  his  proclamation  against  the  purchase 
of"  Richard  Henderson,  and  other  disorderly  persons,"  in  which 
he  declared  the  purchase  null  and  void,  vesting  in  them  no  right 
of  title  whatever,  the  title  and  sovereignty  of  the  same  remain- 
ing exclusively  in  the  government  of  Virginia,  as  a  portion  of 
her  territory.  This  gave  rise  to  much  diffrulty  between  the 
proprietors  and  those  who  held  their  land-titles. 

Yet  emigrants  from  North  Carolina  had  continued  to  visit 
the  new  settlements  of  Transylvania,  and  made  almost  daily 
accessions  to  the  resident  population.  The  Shawanese,  al- 
though expelled  from  the  occupancy  of  the  country  north  of 
Cumberland,  still  retained  a  claim  to  the  lands  as  a  hunting- 
ground,  common  to  them  and  the  Cherokees,  and  they  had,  at 
the  treaty  of  Camp  Charlotte,  reluctantly  yielded  their  consent 
to  the  white  man's  advance.  Hence  straggling  parties  of  Shaw- 
anese, as  well  as  a  few  Cherokees  who  infested  these  regions, 
took  every  opportunity  to  harass  the  advance  of  the  settlers. 
The  route  by  which  the  emigrants  from  North  Carolina  ad- 
vanced was  exposed  to  depredations  and  murders,  which  these 
tribes  could  occasionally  commit  with  impunity.  And  as  the 
Indians  continued  to  evince  a  hostile  disposition  toward  the  set- 
tlement, it  was  deemed  advisable  to  take  all  precautions  for  its 
protection  against  any  combined  attack  which  might  be  con- 
templated by  the  savages.  Hence,  about  the  first  of  May,  an- 
other fortified  station,  or  "Fort,"  had  been  commenced  near  the 
present  site  of  Stanford,  in  Lincoln  county,  under  the  control 
and  command  of  Colonel  Benjamin  Logan.  This  fort  for  many 
years  constituted  an  important  defense  for  the  population  in 
this  part  of  the  country,  and  it  was  afterward  known  as  "  Lo- 
gan's Fort,"  a  name  given  in  honor  of  its  founder.*  This  was 
the  second  settlement  and  station  in  Kentucky. 

In  the  mean  time,  regardless  of  the  governor's  proclamation, 
the  company  claimed  the  right  of  title  to  the  soil,  and  lands 
were  sold  or  leased  by  the  proprietors  on  terms  that  might  be 
termed  liberal  to  emigrants,  reserving  to  themselves  one  half 

piled  by  Timothy  Flint,  and  published  in  Cincinnati.    It  is  an  excellent  picture  of  fron- 
tier life  and  the  perils  of  savage  warfare,  and,  with  the  exception  of  some  exaggera- 
tions and  fancy  sketches  of  border  incident,  is  authentic  history. 
*  Butler's  Hist,  of  Kentucky,  p.  30. 


304 


HISTORY    OP  THE 


ilii 


!ii 


[book  III. 


of  all  the  gold  and  silver,  the  lead,  copper,  and  sulphur  mines 
which  might  subsequently  be  discovered.*  With  this  reserva- 
tion, and  the  additional  payment  of  a  small  nominal  rent,  deeds 
were  drawn  up  and  executed  with  great  formality,  and  full  of 
the  old  English  law-verbiage.  The  company  also  opened  ac- 
counts with  the  purchasers  and  settlers,  and  furnished  them,  on 
reasonable  terms  and  at  fair  prices,  with  ammunition  and  such 
other  articles  as  were  requisite  for  the  general  defense.  Toward 
the  liquidation  of  these  accounts,  each  settler  was  allowed  a 
credit  of  fifty  cents  per  day  for  all  military  service,  for  serving 
as  rangers  or  scouts,  for  opening  roads,  and  for  public  hunting. 
Powder  was  charged  at  two  dollars  and  sixty  cents  per  pound, 
and  lead  at  sixteen  and  two  third  cents  per  pound ;  prices  cer- 
tainly not  unreasonable  in  that  remote  region.f 

A  land-office  was  established  for  the  regular  entry  of  all  sales 
made  under  the  authority  of  the  company ;  surveyors,  clerks, 
and  chain  carriers,  all  duly  sworn,  were  appointed  by  the 
"  agent  of  the  company."  The  manner  of  surveys  was  also 
established,  to  be  governed,  as  a  general  rule,  "by  the  four 
cardinal  points,  except  where  rivers  or  mountains  so  intervene 
as  to  render  it  too  inconvenient."!  An  officer  was  appointed 
whose  duty  corresponded  to  that  of  secretary  of  state  in  the 
colonial  government.  The  "  agent"  of  the  company  was  Colo- 
nel John  Williams,  of  North  Carolina. 

As  early  as  the  23d  of  May,  a  proprietary  government  had 
been  organized  at  Boonesborough  by  the  election  of  a  house 
of  delegates,  consisting  of  eighteen  persons,  chosen  from  the 
four  settlements  on  the  south  side  of  Kentucky  River,  including 

*  The  gettlements  on  the  north  and  northeast  side  of  Kentucky'  River,  at  this  early 
period,  were  known  as  the  "  Crown  lands,"  in  contradistinction  to  the  Transylvania 
purchase.  Many  transient  adventurers  having  visited  the  West,  in  company  with  the 
colonies  and  armed  caravans,  spent  their  time,  as  interest  or  inclination  directed,  among 
the  aettlers  on  the  company's  lands,  or  among  those  on  the  crown  lands. 

t  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  30-32. 

t  See  Hall's  Sketches  of  the  West,  vol.  ii.,  Appendix.  This  is  a  valuable  collection 
of  historical  sketches  of  the  Western  settlements,  incidents,  and  character  of  Western 
life,  by  Judge  James  Hall,  of  Indiana.  Although  it  is  presented  to  the  public  (edition 
of  1835)  as  "  sketches,"  it  is  useful  for  the  many  valuable  incidents  of  Western  history, 
which  the  author  has  collected  and  arranged  under  appropriate  head'.  Some  por- 
tions of  it  are  written  in  a  style  interesting  to  the  general  reader,  rather  than  an  ex- 
act detail  of  connected  historical  facts.  Although  in  some  portions  the  author  has  not 
been  very  accurate  as  to  unimportant  facts  in  history,  he  has  greatly  contributed  to  aid 
the  future  historian.  Those  who  desire  to  see  a  more  full  account  of  the  transactions 
of  the  company  proprietors  of  Transylvania  during  the  existence  of  their  government, 
will  find  valuable  records  of  the  same  in  the  Appendix  of  54  pages,  in  vol.  ii.  of  Hall's 
Sketches. 


A.t).  1775.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISfllSHIPPI. 


806 


Boonesborough  and  Harrodsburg.*  After  a  session  of  nearly 
one  week,  they  adjourned,  having  enacted  a  number  of  laws 
for  the  good  government  of  the  colony,  independent  of  the  ju- 
risdiction of  Virginia.  Among  the  objects  for  which  this  con- 
vention was  assembled  was  that  of  adopting  a  written  com- 
pact, defming  the  powers  and  prerogatives  of  the  proprietors, 
and  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  colonists.  The  proprie- 
tors made  a  formal  exhibit  of  their  title-deed  to  the  soil  from 
the  Cherokee  Indians,  and  desired  it  to  be  spread  upon  their 
journal  as  a  public  record. f 

The  proprietors  then  entered  into  a  written  compact  for  se- 
curing the  rights  of  the  colonists,  beginning  with  the  following 
preamble,  viz. : 

"  Whereas  it  is  highly  necessary  for  the  peace  of  the  pro- 
prietors, and  the  security  of  the  people  of  this  colony,  that  the 
powers  of  the  one,  and  the  liberties  of  the  other,  be  ascertain- 
ed ;  We,  Richard  Henderson,  Nathaniel  Hart,  and  John  Lut- 
trell,  in  behalf  of  ourselves,  as  well  as  of  the  other  proprietors 
of  Transylvania,  on  the  one  part,  and  the  representatives  of  the 
people  of  the  colony  on  the  other  part,  do  most  solemnly  enter 
into  the  following  agreement  and  compact,  to  wit,"  &c.  The 
following  are  some  of  the  conditions  and  provisions  of  this  con- 
tract, or  constitution,  which  was  signed  by  the  three  proprie- 
tors above  recited  on  the  part  of  the  company,  and  by  Thomas 
Slaughter,  chairman,  on  the  part  of  the  convention,  viz. : 

"  1.  The  election  of  delegates  in  the  colony  shall  be  annual. 

"  2.  Perfect  religious  freedom  and  general  toleration. 

"  3.  The  judges  of  the  superior  courts  to  be  appointed  by 
the  proprietors,  but  to  be  paid  by  the  people,  and  to  them  an- 

*  See  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p.  264,  265,  266.  It  might  be  interesting  to  the  general 
reader  to  know  the  names  of  the  prominent  men  of  this  first  little  republic  in  Kentucky, 
who  composed  the  convention  to  define  their  rights  and  powers.    They  were  as  follows : 

For  Boonesborough :  Squire  Boone,  Daniel  Boone,  William  Cocke,  Samuel  Hender- 
son, William  Moore,  and  Richard  Calloway. 

For  Harrodsburg :  Thomas  Slaughter,  John  Lythe,  Valentino  Harmon,  and  James 
Douglass. 

For  the  Town  of  St.  Asaph:  John  Todd,  Alexander  Spotswood  Dandridge,  John 
Floyd,  and  Samuel  Wood. 

For  Boiling  Spring  Settlement :  James  Harrod,  Nathan  Hammond,  Isaac  Davis,  and 
Azariah  Davis. 

Colonel  Thomas  Slaughter  was  unanimously  chosen  chairman,  and  Matthew  Jcwctt 
clerk. 

t  For  a  condensed  historical  sketch  of  the  legislative  proceedings  of  the  Transylvania 
Republic,  see  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p.  264-276.  Also,  Butler's  Kentucky,  Introduc 
tion,  p.  68. 


300 


I1I6TORY    OF   THE 


[llOOK    III. 


swerable  for  mnl-conduct :  the  judges  of  the  inferior  courts  to 
be  recommended  by  the  people,  nnd  to  be  commissioned  by  the 
proprietors. 

"  4.  The  legislative  authority,  when  the  colony  shall  be  more 
mature,  to  consist  of  three  branches,  to  wit:  1st.  A  house  of 
delegates,  elected  by  the  people;  iJd.  A  council  of  freehold 
residents,  not  exceeding  twelve  in  number ;  3d.  The  proprie- 
tors. 

"  5.  The  convention  shall  have  the  sole  power  to  raise  and 
appropriate  all  public  moneys,  and  of  electing  their  own  treas- 
urer." 

Thus  commenced  the  first  civilized  government  in  Kentucky, 
and  such  were  some  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  a  Repub- 
lican form  of  civil  government,  which  planted  in  the  remote 
West  those  germs  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  which  had  al- 
ready taken  deep  root  in  the  Atlantic  [)rovinces. 

The  second  session  of  the  convention  convened  on  the  first 
Thursday  in  Septemb'er  following,  at  Boonesborough.  At  this 
session  the  convention,  after  formally  acknowledging  the  au- 
thority of  the  proprietors,  Richard  Henderson  and  company, 
proceeded  to  establish  courts  of  justice  and  rules  of  proceeding 
in  the  same ;  they  also  enacted  a  militia  law,  an  attachment 
law,  a  law  for  preserving  the  game,  and  for  the  appointment 
of  civil  and  military  officers. 

In  the  mean  time,  at  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors,  held  at 
Oxford,  in  the  county  of  Granville,  North  Carolina,  on  the  25th 
day  of  September,  1775,  certain  resolutions  were  adopted  for 
the  good  government  of  the  colony.  Among  them  was  one 
appointing  Colonel  John  Williams,  a  member  of  the  company, 
general  agent  in  behalf  of  the  proprietors,  and  defining  his  du- 
ties and  powers,  and  the  manner  of  supplying  his  place  with  a 
successor.  James  Hogg,  another  member  of  the  company, 
was  a|ipointed  a  delegate  of  the  company  to  the  continental 
Congress,  with  a  memorial  to  that  body  setting  forth  their 
claims  to  the  territory  of  Transylvania,  and  professing  an  ar- 
dent attachment  to  the  cause  for  which  they  were  contending, 
and  claiming  their  protection  as  a  portion  of  the  great  country 
represented  by  them. 

Soon  afterward,  in  the  winter  of  1775-6,  a  memorial,  or  pe- 
tition, signed  by  nearly  ninety  men  deeply  interested  in  the 
affairs  of  Transylvania,  was  sent  to  the  convention  of  Virginia, 


A.D.   1775.]  VALLEY    OF    TIIR    MlBHiaflim. 


3G7 


remonstrating  against  the  authority  of  the  Company,  and  pray- 
ing to  be  protected  against  the  legal  enforcement  of  their  obli- 
gations, given  for  lands  to  which  no  valid  titles  could  be  given. 
The  emigrants  to  the  Transylvania  colony  had  continued  to 
increase  its  numbers  from  the  time  that  the  town  of  Boonesbor- 
ough  was  completed.  Before  the  first  of  November  the  entire 
occupants  of  all  the  settlements  was  estiinated  at  three  hun- 
dred persons,  the  majority  of  whom  were  efficient  men  for  the 
defense  of  the  inhabitants.  The  whole  quantity  of  land  in  cul- 
tivation was  two  hundred  and  thirty  acres,  chiefly  planted  in 
corn.  The  amount  of  lands  entered  in  the  land-office  by  in- 
dividuals amounted  to  five  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  acres.* 
But  many  of  the  adventurers  were  already  impatient  to  return 
to  the  quiet  haunts  of  domestic  life  in  the  settlements  east  of  the 
Cumberland  Mountains. 

Up  to  this  period  the  southwestern  angle  of  Virginia  was  a 
frontier  region,  with  a  few  sparse  habitations  distributed  on 
the  northern  branches  of  Holston  River  and  upon  the  branches 
of  Clinch  River,  comprising  most  of  the  present  counties  of 
Wythe,  Smyth,  Washington,  Russell,  Lee,  and  Scott.  The 
contiguous  portion  of  North  Carolina,  comprising  the  present 
counties  of  Washington,  Sullivan,  Carter,  and  Johnson,  was 
also  a  frontier  region,  comprised  in  the  "  Western  District"  of 
North  Carolina,  extending  indefinitely  westward,  even  to  the 
Mississippi.  Powell's  Valley  was  nearly  three  hundred  miles 
from  the  older  settlements  east  of  the  mountains,  and  about  one 
hundred  and  forty  miles  distant  from  the  extreme  western  set- 
tlements of  Transylvania. 

But  the  attempt  to  establish  a  proprietary  government  re 
ceived  no  sanction  from  the  province  of  Virginia,  nor  from  the 
provincial  Congress,  nor  subsequently  from  the  Legislature  of 
the  State  of  Virginia,  although  the  company's  agents  were  in- 
defatigable in  their  efforts  to  obtain  the  sanction  of  the  two  lat- 
ter legislative  bodies.f  The  majority  of  the  people  of  Tran- 
sylvania never  had  cordially  approved  and  supported  the  pro- 
prietary government,  and  to  a  portion  of  them  it  was  decid- 
edly unacceptable  from  the  first  organization.  The  rapid 
spread  of  the  Revolutionary  opinions  through  the  colonies 

*  See  Butler's  Kentucky,  Iiitroduction,  \).  68,  69. 

t  See  Sutler's  Kentucky,  Introduction,  p.  68, 69.    Also,  Hall's  Sketches,  rol.  i,  p.  276. 
877. 


308 


IIIflTORY    OF   TilB 


[book  III. 


grently  augmented  the  number  of  disaffected  in  Transylvania, 
until  the  proprietary  government  was  virtually  rejected.  Col- 
onel Henderson  and  his  associates  finding  it  impracticable  to 
sustain  themselves  in  the  executive  station  which  they  had  as- 
sumed, at  length  abandoned  thtfir  pretensions,  and  sought  pecu- 
niary indemnity  from  Virginia,  in  consideration  of  having  ex- 
tinguished Indian  title.  This  they  finally  obtained,  after  many 
years  of  delay.* 

[A.D.  1770.]  The  jurisdiction  of  Virginia  was  formally  ex- 
tended over  the  whole  colony  of  Transylvania  during  the  fol- 
lowing year,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  the  people.  Such  was 
the  fate  of  the  first  attempt  to  establish  a  privileged  class  and 
a  landed  aristocracy  in  Kentucky. 

In  the  mean  time,  pioneer  settlers  were  crowding  into  the 
beautiful  plains  on  the  northeast  and  west  side  of  the  Kentucky 
River,  between  thirty  and  fifty  miles  north  of  Boonesborough. 
They  were  still  exploring  the  country,  and  making  locations 
and  surveys,  lodging  in  temporary  camps,  and  without  families 
or  domestic  encumbrances,  and  exposed  to  the  incursions  and 
depredations  of  the  northwestern  Indians. 

The  few  females  who  had  as  yet  ventured  into  these  remote 
settlements,  and  the  small  number  of  permanent  residences 
which  had  been  erected,  were  on  the  south  side  of  the  Ken- 
tucky River,  in  the  vicinity  of  Boonesborough,  Logan's  Fort, 
and  "  Harrod's  Station."  Near  the  latter  place,  a  fort  or  forti- 
fied station  was  in  progress  of  erection,  preparatory  to  the  in- 
troduction of  the  families  next  year.  This  fort  was  not  com- 
pleted until  March  following,  when  it  formed  the  third  regular 

*  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p.  277-280,  The  company  had  been  very  active  in  their 
eObrts  to  obtain  an  acknowledgment  of  their  claims  by  the  continental  Congress,  as 
well  as  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Virginia.  On  the  25th  of  September,  1775, 
James  Hogg,  Esq.,  had  been  appointed  a  delegate  to  tlie  Congress,  with  a  memorial 
from  the  company;  bat  his  efforts  were  unsuccessful. 

Although  the  proprietors  had  been  liberal  in  their  first  sales  of  land  to  settlers,  and 
had  made  generous  donations  to  meritorious  individuals,  yet  they  soon  afterward  be- 
came more  exorbitant  in  their  demands  for  lands,  surveying,  and  terms  of  tenure.  The 
people  became  dissatisfied,  and  their  fears  were  aroused  at  the  uncertainty  of  the  title 
under  which  the  proprietors  themselves  held  the  lands.  They  at  length  refused  to  sub- 
mit to  obligations  entered  into  with  the  agent  of  the  company,  in  consideration  of  lands 
which  belonged,  in  fact,  to  the  state.  Hence  the  people  of  the  colony  threw  themselves 
upon  the  protection  of  the  government  of  Virginia,  by  a  memorial  sent  to  the  "  Conven- 
tion of  the  Colony  of  Virginia,"  with  the  signatures  of  eighty-six  men  of  the  colony. 
Among  these  were  the  names  of  James  Harrod,  William  Harrod,  Levi  Harrod,  Will- 
iam Wood,  Thomas  Wilson,  John  Hardin,  John  Helm,  and  others  who  have  left  large 
families  to  perpetuate  their  names— See  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  ii.,  p.  336-240 ;  also, 
249-254. 


HOOK  III. 

ylvania, 
1.  Col- 
cuble  to 
had  as- 
ht  pecu- 
ving  ex- 
er  many 

anlly  ex- 
:  the  fol- 
uch  was 
lass  and 

into  the 
Kentucky 
borough, 
locations 
.  families 
jions  and 

e  remote 
jsidences 
he  Ken- 
n's  Fort, 
or  forti- 

0  the  in- 
lot  corn- 
regular 

tivo  in  their 

TongreBS,  as 

Imber,  1775, 

a  memorial 

Icttlen,  anil 
Icrward  be- 
Inure.    The 

1  of  the  title 
liBcd  to  anb- 
ton  of  lands 
IthemselvcR 

"  Conven- 
Ithe  colony. 
Jrrod.  Will- 
ie lefl:  large 
-240;  also, 


A.D.  1770.] 


VALLEY  or  TIIR  MISSIRflim. 


.100 


; 


fltation  in  Kentucky,  Boonesborough  and  Logan's  Fort  being 
the  first  and  second. 

Diu'iiig  the  winter,  several  murders  and  ass.iults  had  been 
committed  by  parties  of  Indians  who  had  been  lurking  about 
the  settlements  ;  these,  however,  were  only  marauding  parties 
of  8hawanese,  without  the  sanction  of  their  chiefs.  Yet  there 
were  indications  of  dissatisfaction  among  the  noiihwestern 
tribes  at  the  rapid  advance  of  the  whites  into  their  (dioico 
hunting-grounds,  where,  from  time  immemorial,  the  bear,  the 
deer,  the  elk,  and  the  butfalo  had  their  winter  resort,  in  the 
luxuriant  cane  which  covered  its  extensive  plains  and  bottoms, 
and  served  both  for  food  and  a  shelter  from  the  blasts  of  winter. 
Should  this  fine  regicm,  the  paradise  of  the  Indian  hunter,  bo 
given  up  to  the  whites  without  a  struggle  ?  The  Indian  thought 
not ;  and  the  British  agents  at  Detroit,  in  the  Illinois  country 
and  in  the  Cherokee  nation,  were  soon  ready  to  aid  them  to 
harass,  and,  if  possible,  to  break  up  these  advanced  settlements. 
The  Indians  began  to  find  that  the  English  agents  and  com- 
mandants of  the  northwestern  posts  were  disposed  to  encour- 
age them  in  their  hostility  against  the  frontier  people.  Of 
course,  the  stations,  the  roads,  the  frequented  paths,  and  traces 
near  the  settlements,  began  to  be  infested  with  lurking  bands 
of  Indians,  who  never  failed  to  attack  individuals  when  it  could 
be  done  with  impunity.  Hence  the  inhabitants  were  com- 
pelled to  adopt  measures  of  precaution  to  prevent  frequent  dis- 
asters from  the  wily  savage. 

As  spring  began  to  open,  the  tide  of  emigration  began  to 
move  toward  Kentucky.  Many  families  from  the  Mononga- 
hela  were  now  willing  to  venture  into  the  country,  under  the 
protection  of  the  three  strongly-forlified  stations  which  were 
now  ready  for  their  reception.  Thus  women  and  children  be- 
gan to  swell  the  numbers  of  those  who  had  already  gone  as 
pioneers  to  Kentucky.  A  few  slaves,  also,  were  introduced, 
with  some  personal  property  and  domestic  utensils.  Among 
the  first  families  introduced  by  way  of  the  Ohio  River,  from 
tiie  settlements  on  the  Monongahela,  was  that  of  Colonel  James 
Harrod.  Ever  active,  and  full  of  daring  enterprise,  having 
completed  his  station  and  a  house  for  a  private  residence,  he 
proceeded  to  the  Monongahela  for  his  family  and  a  colony  of 
settlers.  Early  in  the  summer,  he  returned  by  way  of  the  Ohio 
to  the  Kentucky  River,  in  a  boat  freighted  with  a  number 


400 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  III. 


ail 


of  families  besides  his  own,  all  destined  for  Harrod's  Station. 
Among  the  families  thus  introduced  were  those  of  Denton. 
M'Gary,  and  Hogan,  all  valuable  citizens  for  a  frontier  com- 
munity. Other  families  followed  in  the  course  of  the  summer, 
increasing  the  number  of  females  at  Harrod's  Station  to  some- 
thing like  thirty.  This  was  the  first  introduction  of  females 
into  this  portion  of  the  Kentucky  settlements. 

In  the  mean  time,  difficulties  between  the  colonies  and  the 
British  crown  had  ripened  into  bloodshed  and  open  rebellion 
against  the  regal  power.  The  colonies,  through  their  dele- 
gates in  general  Congress  convened,  had  declared  themselves 
free  and  independent  states ;  to  maintain  which  declaration,  a 
furious  war  was  already  raging  along  the  Atlantic  coast.  Soon 
after  the  commencement  of  hostilities  by  the  British  forces  on 
the  Atlantic  seaboard,  the  northwestern  Indians,  instigated  by 
British  agents  and  emissaries  from  Detroit,  Vincennes,  and 
Kaskaskia,  had  commenced  a  state  of  desultory  warfare  against 
the  exposed  settlements  of  Kentucky  and  Western  Virginia. 
These  settlements,  including  those  of  Pennsylvania,  were  now 
scattered  sparsely  over  a  frontier  region  not  less  than  seven 
hundred  miles  in  extent,  from  the  Alleghany  River  to  the  falls 
of  the  Ohio.  This  extensive  frontier  was  again  to  be  exposed 
to  the  constant  and  terrible  incursions  of  the  Mingoes,  and  the 
warlike  Shawanese  residing  upon  the  waters  of  the  Scioto, 
Miami,  and  Wabash  Rivers.  Such  was  the  condition  of  the 
northwestern  frontier  after  the  opening  of  the  Revolutionary 
war.  The  exposed  inhabitants  were  necessarily  active  in 
their  preparations  to  protect  themselves  from  the  impending 
storm  of  savage  vengeance  which  was  lowering  in  the  west- 
ern horizon,  induced  through  the  instrumentality  of  British  in- 
trigue among  the  northwestern  tribes. 

The  first  indication  of  determined  hostility  on  the  part  of  the 
northwestern  Indians  in  Kentucky  occurred  on  the  7th  of  July. 
Again,  on  the  14th  of  July,  a  party  of  Indians,  almost  in  sight 
of  the  station,  captured  the  daughter  of  Daniel  Boone,  and  two 
daughters  of  Colonel  Calloway,  who  had  strolled  a  few  hun- 
dred yards  from  the  stockade,  upon  the  banks  of  the  Kentucky 
River.  Daniel  Boone,  with  a  party  of  eight  men,  pursued  the 
savages,  and,  after  two  days  of  pursuit,  succeeded  in  re-cap- 
turing the  girls  and  in  killing  two  of  the  Indians. 

After  this  occurrence  the  stations  were  placed  in  a  more 


IC  III. 

ition. 

nton. 

com- 

imer, 

jome- 

male"» 

id  the 
)ellion 
dele- 
selves 
tion,  a 
Soon 
ces  on 
.ted  by 
;s,  and 
against 
irginia. 
re  now 
1  seven 
;he  falls 
jxposed 
and  the 
Scioto, 
of  the 
itionai-y 
;tive  in 
•ending 
le  west- 
ttish  in- 

rt  of  the 
)f  July. 
|in  sight 
ind  two 
iw  hun- 
jntucky 
\ueA  the 
[ re-cap- 


A.D.  1776.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPL 


401 


secure  state  of  defense,  the  women  and  children  collected  into 
the  stockades,  and  measures  taken  for  guarding  against  sur- 
prise from  Indian  incursions.  The  detached  settlements  were 
abandoned,  and  their  occupants  retired  to  stronger  stations. 
Many  who  were  able  retired  east  of  the  mountains,  or  to  situ- 
ations less  exposed  on  the  Monongahela,  where  they  imparted 
to  others  a  portion  of  their  enthusiasm  for  the  glorious  coun- 
try of  Kentucky.* 

Among  the  prominent  visitors  of  Kentucky  this  summer  was 
Major  George  Rogers  Clark,  from  Virginia,  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed to  superintend  the  defense  of  the  Kentucky  settlements. 
In  this  employment  he  spent  the  summer  at  Harrod's  Station 
and  Boonesborough  alternately,  organizing  military  companies 
for  their  common  protection. 

Major  Clark  was  one  of  Nature's  noblemen ;  with  a  mind  of 
extraordinary  compass,  he  possessed  also  a  robust  frame  and 
an  iron  constitution.  He  had  already  seen  much  service  in  the 
Indian  wars.  He  had  served  in  the  old  French  war  under 
General  Braddock ;  in  Pontiac's  war  he  was  no  idle  spectator ; 
and  in  Lord  Dunmore's  war  he  was  an  active  field-officer  from 
first  to  last.  Such  was  the  man  whose  military  genius  was  to 
be  the  bulwark  of  the  western  frontier. 

On  the  Carolina  frontier  a  similar  state  of  things  existed. 
Early  in  the  year  1776,  the  people  of  the  "  Western  District," 
with  indignation  and  noble  firmness,  rejected  the  proflered  pro- 
tection of  the  royal  government,  and  chose  to  adhere  to  the 
cause  of  the  colonies  in  sustaining  the  measures  of  the  Conti- 
nental Congress  in  support  of  their  independence.  This,  in 
the  eye  of  the  royal  authorities,  placed  them  on  the  same  foot- 
ing with  the  people  of  the  northwestern  frontier,  and  beyond 
the  pale  of  civilized  warfare.  Through  the  influence  of  Sir 
John  Stewart,  British  superintendent  of  southern  Indian  afljiirs, 
a  formidable  invasion  of  these  settlements  by  the  Cherokees 
was  devised  for  the  depopulation  of  the  country.  But  the  In- 
dians were  ultimately  defeated  in  the  subsequent  operations  of 
Virginia  and  Carolina  for  the  defense  of  the  frontiers.! 

*  Sr,  nntler**  Kentucky,  p.  32,  33.    Also,  Flint's  Life  of  Boone,  p.  93. 
t  Bee  VV  diterbotham's  America,  vol.  ii.,  p.  26. 

Vol.  I.— C  c 


la  more 


403 


HISTORY    OF    TIIK 


BOOK  III. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


II   vi» 


Ml 


m 


BRITISH    OCCUPANCY    OF    FLORIDA    AND   THE    ILLINOIS    COUNTRY. — 

CLOSE   OF  THE  BRITISH  DOMINION   IN   THE   MISSISSIPFI  VALLEY. 

A.D.    1704  TO    1782. 

Argument. — Extent  of  Z^lorida  nnd  the  Illinoia  Country  under  the  British  Dominion.— 
English  Authority  estnlilidhod  in  Woit  Florida  by  Governor  Johnsttin.— Major  Loftus 
ap)H)intcd  Commandant  of  Illinois.— His  Defeat  above  Tunica  Bayou,  and  his  Death.— 
DiNsntisfaction  of  the  French  of  West  Florida. — Population  in  \1M. — Anglo  Ameri- 
can Emigration  to  Florida  cnoourngod. — Rraigrnuts  arrive  from  1765  to  1770. — Orcat 
Increase  of  Immigrants  in  177.')  to  1770. — Settlements  on  onst  Side  of  tlie  Mississippi. 
— British  Military  Posts  in  West  Florida. — Monopoly  of  Trado  by  British  Traders. — 
Emigration  in  177.'»-C. — Agriculture  encouraged. — British  Tories  in  West  Florida. — 
British  Authority  estnlilishcd   in  the  lUinoii  Country,  nori. — St.  Ange. — Captain 
Stirling. — French  Populntitin  in  no.'). — General  Gage's  Proclamation.— Major  Frazer. 
— Colonel  llccd. — Colonel  Wilkins. — His  Administration. — Grants  of  Land. — British 
Military  Posts  in  the  Northwest. — Detroit. — Kaskaskia.— Cahokia.— St.  Vincent. — 
Prejudices  of  the  Illinois  French. — Detroit,  Vinconncs,  and  Koakaskia  the  Source! 
of  all  the  Indian  Barbarities  on  the  Western  Frontier. — Reduction  of  these  British 
Posts  indispensable  to  the  Security  of  the  Virginia  Frontier.- Plan  of  Colonel  Clark's 
Expedition  for  their  Reduction. — Colonel  Clark  leads  his  Expedition  to  Kaskaskia. — 
The  Fort  and  Town  taken  by  Surprise. — Stem  Demeanor  of  the  Conmiander  t"'   "v-'l 
the  French. — Hoppy  Results. — Cahokia  surrenders  to  Captain  Bowman. — Gcvc    • 
Rocheblave  sent  Prisoner  to  Virginia. — People  of  Vincennes  declare  for  Virg- 
Indian  Negotiations  an<l  Treaties  on  the  Wabash. — Jurisdiction  of  Virginia  ext<    .t    / 
over  the  Illinois  Countr>-. — "  Illinois  County." — Colonel  Hamilton  advances  witn  a 
Strong  Force  from  Detroit. — Ca|)tain  Helm  capitulates. — Clark  advances  to  recap- 
ture the  Post. — Colonel  Hamilfam  taken  by  Surprise. — Despairs  of  successful  Defense, 
and  capitulates. — Captain  Helm  captures  a  Detachment  with  Supplies  from  Detroit. 
— Colonel  Hamilton  sent  Captive  to  Virginia. — Is  placed  in  close  Confinement  in  re- 
taliation for  his  Inhumanity. — Colonel  Clark  contemplates  the  Capture  of  Detroit — 
British  Power  expelled  from  the  Illinois  Country. — Difficulties  begin  in  West  Florida. 
— Captain  Willing  descends  the  Mississippi. — His  Collision  with  the  People  at  Nat- 
chez.— First  Act  of  Hostility  at  Ellis  Cliffs. — Spain  espouses  the  American  Cause. 
— Oalvez  invades  West  Florida. — Captures  British  Posts  at  Manchac,  Baton  Rouge, 
Natchez,  and  Mobile. — Is  unsuccessful  at  Pensacola. — Pensacola  captured  in  1781. — All 
Florida  submits  to  the  Arms  of  Spain. — British  Dominion  ceases  on  the  Mississippi. 

[A.D.  1704.]  As  has  been  observed  heretofore,*  the  prov- 
ince ot  West  Florida,  under  the  British  dominion,  comprised  a 
large  extent  of  territory  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  between  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo  and  the  Bayou  Man- 
chac, and  extending  eastward  to  the  Chattahoochy  River. 
East  of  Lake  Maurepas,  it  comprised  all  the  coast  and  ports 
on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  Appalachicola  Bay.  The  whole 
formed  one  government  under  the  commandant,  or  governor, 

*  Sec  book  ii.,  chap.  x. ;  also,  book  i.,  chap.  t. 


A.D.  1764.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISBISSirPI. 


403 


prov- 
irised  a 
jissippi 

Man- 
IRiver. 

ports 
I  whole 
fernor, 


whose  headquarters  were  at  Pensacola,  the  capital  of  the  prov- 
ince. 

Early  in  February,  1704,  Captain  George  Johnston  arrived 
at  Pensacola,  in  company  with  a  regiment  of  troops,  to  take 
formal  possession  of  the  province,  of  which  he  had  been  ap- 
pointed civil  and  military  governor.  The  French  posts  of  Fort 
Condu,  Toulouse,  Baton  Rouge,  and  Rosalie,  at  Natchez,  were 
soon  afterward  garrisoned  with  British  troops.  Another  fort 
was  built  during  the  year  upon  the  north  bank  of  the  Bayou 
Manchac,  or  Iberville,  near  its  junction  with  the  Mississippi, 
and  was  subsequently  known  as  "  Fort  Bute,"  in  honor  of  the 
Earl  of  Bute,  who  had  been  chosen  prime  minister  by  George 
the  Third. 

Governor  Johnston,  after  his  arrival,  had  issued  his  procla- 
mation announcing  his  powers  and  the  limits  of  his  jurisdiction, 
after  which  measures  were  taken  to  reorganize  the  civil  gov- 
ernment under  English  commandants  and  magistrates ;  supe- 
rior courts  were  organized  under  English  judges.* 

The  "  Illinois  country,"  comprising  the  region  between  the 
Upper  Mississippi  and  the  Wabash  River,  differed  in  extent 
but  little  from  the  present  limits  of  the  State  of  Illinois.  The 
settlements  in  that  region  were  isolated,  in  the  midst  of  a  bound- 
less wilderness,  inhabited  by  the  few  native  tribes  who  roamed 
over  its  extensive  plains  and  forests.  Kaskaskia  was  the  prin- 
cipal town  and  settlement,  and  Fort  Chartres  had  long  been 
the  headquarters  of  the  French  commandant. 

West  Florida. — On  the  27th  of  February,  Major  Loftus,  who 
had  been  stationed  at  the  outlet  of  Bayou  Manchac,  was  dis- 
patched from  that  point  with  four  hundred  men  for  the  posts  in 
the  Illinois  country,  of  which  he  had  been  appointed  command- 
ant. With  his  detachment,  he  set  out  from  Manchac  to  ascend 
the  river  in  ten  sixteen-oared  barges  or  keels ;  and  after  three 
weeks  of  toil  against  the  strong  current  of  the  river,  he  had  just 
reached  the  point  of  highlands  which  touch  the  river  for  three 
miles  on  the  east,  about  ten  miles  above  the  mouth  of  Red  River. 
Here,  in  the  contracted  channel  of  the  river,  the  deep,strong  cur- 
rent sweeps  for  five  miles  around  a  bend  at  the  base  of  the  bluff. 
The  heights  on  the  east,  which  rise  abruptly  from  the  water's 
edge,  as  well  as  the  low  alluvial  bank  on  the  west  side,  were 

•  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  342,  343.    Also,  seo  Gentleman's  Magazine,  London, 
1764. 


i  m 


f 


ii ' !' 


hi  ' 


404 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  III. 


clothed  in  heavy  forests,  with  impenetrable  thickets  of  cane 
undergrowth.  At  this  point,  concealed  on  both  sides  of  the 
river,  were  assembled  a  large  number  of  the  Tunica  Indians 
in  ambuscade,  awaiting  the  approach  of  the  English  army 
in  their  toilsome  and  slow  advance  against  the  majestic  flood. 
These  Indians,  former  confederates  of  France,  had  imbibed  the 
Frenchman's  hatred  of  British  dominion,  which  had  not  been 
placated  by  the  imperious  English.  As  the  last  galley  entered 
the  ambuscade,  the  astonished  English  troops  were  suddenly 
assailed  along  the  whole  line  with  a  destructive  discharge  of 
fire-arms  and  arrows,  accompanied  with  most  terrific  yells  from 
the  unseen  savages.  The  whole  fleet,  thrown  into  confusion, 
after  an  ineffectual  attempt  at  resistance  against  the  unseen 
foe,  fell  back  with  the  current  beyond  the  reach  of  the  en- 
emy. 

A  large  number  of  the  men  were  killed  and  wounded. 
Among  the  slain  was  the  commandant,  Major  Loftus  himself, 
after  witnessing  the  fall  of  numbers  of  his  brave  troops.  The 
expedition  to  the  Illinois  country  failed,  and  the  remnant  of  the 
detachment  dropped  down  with  the  current  to  the  point  of  em- 
barkation, from  which  they  were  subsequently  ordered  to  Mo- 
bile. Such  was  the  defeat  of  Major  Loftus ;  and  the  attempt 
to  occupy  the  Illinois  country  was  abandoned  until  after  the 
general  pacif  cation  of  the  northwestern  Indians  subsequent  to 
Pontiac's  war  and  the  treaty  of  the  German  Flats. 

The  point  on  the  Mississippi  where  this  disaster  occurred 
was  known  subsequently,  during  the  British  dominion,  as  "  Lof- 
tus's  Heights  ;"  at  a  later  date  the  hills  were  occupied  by 
Fort  Adams,  which  name  is  still  retained  by  the  village  at  the 
base  of  the  bluff".  So  soon  as  it  was  known  that  the  English 
jurisdiction  was  extended  over  the  settlements  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Mississippi  as  far  as  the  Walnut  Hills,  great  dissatisfac- 
tion was  expressed  by  the  French  population,  which  was  at  that 
time  quite  numerous  in  that  section  of  country.  Many  de- 
termined to  retire  across  the  river,  where  the  jurisdiction  of 
France  was  still  exercised  over  the  people.  Yet,  after  having 
been  assured  that  they  should  be  protected  in  their  religion, 
rights,  and  property,  many  consented  to  remain  and  test  the 
fair  promises  of  their  new  rulers.  Others  resolved  to  be  recon- 
ciled by  no  assurances,  and  obstinately  refused  to  submit  them- 
selves to  the  hated  dominion  of  England.    Those  who  preferred 


A.D.  1768.] 


VALLEY    OF   TUB   MISSISSIPPI. 


405 


to  submit  to  tue  doubtful  rule  of  France  in  Louisiana  retired 
west  of  the  river,  and  south  of  the  Bayou  Manchac. 

[A.D.  1765.]  After  the  extension  of  the  British  dominion 
over  West  Florida,  and  until  the  outbreak  of  hostilities  against 
the  United  Colonies  on  the  Atlantic  border,  the  English  author- 
ities gave  every  encouragement,  and  held  out  strong  induce- 
ments to  emigration  from  the  Atlantic  provinces,  and  especially 
from  the  Carolinas  and  Georgia.  It  had  been  ascertained  that 
no  country  could  excel  that  portion  of  Florida  which  extended 
upon  the  Mississippi  River,  and  the  people  of  North  Carolina 
and  Georgia  began  to  seek  a  route  through  the  interior,  and 
down  the  Mississippi,  to  the  new  province  of  West  Florida. 
They  were  not  averse  to  exchange  the  sterile  pine  lands  near 
the  Atlantic  coast  for  the  rich  alluvions  and  the  fertile  hills 
of  the  Natchez  country.  Many  began  to  explore  the  route 
across  to  the  upper  branches  of  the  Holston  and  Tennessee 
Rivers,  through  the  Indian  country  to  the  Mississippi.  The 
Tennessee  and  Ohio  Rivers  were  found  to  afford  fine  naviga- 
tion, and  an  easy  route  to  Florida.  Those  who  came  received 
liberal  grants  of  land  in  the  region  of  rich  uplands  extending 
from  the  Yazoo  to  Baton  Rouge.  From  these  early  emigrants 
are  descended  some  of  the  oldest  American  families  now  in- 
habiting this  portion  of  the  present  states  of  Mississippi  and 
Louisiana. 

Emigrants  soon  began  to  arrive  from  the  provinces  near  the 
Atlantic  seaboard,  and  from  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  as  well 
as  from  the  British  colonies  in  the  West  Indies.  Among  the 
first  colonies  which  arrived  in  this  portion  of  West  Florida  was 
one  from  the  banks  of  the  Roanoke,  in  North  Carolina,  which 
formed  settlements  upon  the  first  highlands  north  of  the  Iber- 
ville Bayou,  and  thence  northward  to  the  vicinity  of  Baton 
Rouge.  This  was  probably  the  first  Anglo-American  colony 
which  settled  upon  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi.* 

[A.D.  1768.]  During  the  next  three  years  numerous  emi- 
grants arrived  from  Georgia  and  the  Carolinas,  as  well  as  from 
New  Jersey,  and  settled  in  the  regions  drained  by  the  Bayou 
Sara,  the  Homochitto,  and  the  Bayou  Pierre,  comprising  the 
upland  region  from  Baton  Rouge  to  Grand  Gulf  Hills,  and  gen- 
erally within  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  from  the  immediate  bank 
of  the  Mississippi.     A  few  years  afterward,  a  colony  of  Scotch 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  343. 


406 


HISTORY   OF  THB 


[book  III 


l>     w 


Highlanders  from  North  Carolina  arrived,  and  formed  a  settle- 
ment upon  the  upper  branches  of  the  Homochitto,  about  thirty 
miles  eastward  from  Natchez.  At  a  subsequent  date  others ' 
arrived  from  Scotland  and  increased  the  settlement,  which  af- 
terward  assumed  the  name  of  Scotia,  or  New  Scotland.  The 
people  of  this  settlement  still  preserve  much  of  their  Highland 
character,  and  not  a  few  of  the  older  branches  of  families  yet 
speak  their  native  Gaelic  tongue. 

[A.D.  1770.]  About  the-  year  1770,  emigrants  began  to  ar- 
rive from  the  British  provinces  of  North  America  by  way  of 
the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Rivers  ;  yet  it  was  not  until  the  year 
1773  that  the  greatest  number  of  emigrants  advanced  by  this 
route.  A  large  portion  advanced  from  New  Jersey,  Dela- 
ware, and  Virginia  westward  to  the  Monongahela  and  the  Up- 
per Ohio,  while  another  portion,  from  North  and  South  Caro- 
lina, advanced  westward  to  the  Holston  and  Cumberland  Riv- 
ers, and  thence  to  the  Ohio.  The  disturbances  growing  out 
of  the  Revolutionary  war  prevented  further  emigration  after 
the  year  1777. 

The  British  authority  on  the  Lower  Mississippi  was  sus- 
tained by  several  military  posts  with  ample  garrisons.  Of 
these  the  principal  were  Fort  Charlotte,  at  Mobile,  formerly 
called  Fort  Conde ;  Fort  Bute,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Iber- 
ville, erected  in  1765;  the  post  of  Baton  Rouge,  and  Fort  Pan- 
mure,  at  Natchez,  formerly  called  Fort  Rosalie. 

With  these  supporters  of  her  power,  England  began  to  en- 
courage her  citizens  to  monopolize  the  trade  of  the  Lower 
Mississippi,  and  to  introduce  large  quantities  of  slaves  from 
Africa.  From  Fort  Bute  the  English  traders  supplied  the  set- 
tlements of  Louisiana  with  English  articles  of  trade,  and  with 
slaves,  which  had  been  prohibited  by  the  Spanish  government. 
The  latter  were  introduced  from  the  coast  of  Guinea,  by  way 
of  Lakes  Pontchartrain  and  Maurepas,  and  thence  up  the  Amite 
and  Iberville.* 

To  check  this  illicit  trade  with  the  Spanish  subjects  within 
the  Spanish  dominion,  and  to  embarrass  the  operations  of  the 
English  traders  from  Fort  Bute,  the  Spanish  governor,  Don 
Ulloa,  ordered  a  small  fort  to  be  constructed  on  the  south  bank 
of  the  Iberville,  or  Manchac,  opposite,  and  distant  about  four 
hundred  yards  from  Fort  Bute.  > 

*  Martin's  Loniiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  354. 


A.D.  1776.]  VAT.LEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


409 


The  entire  French  population  in  this  portion  of  the  former 
province  of  Louisiana,  at  the  period  of  its  dismemberment, 
was  in  all  probability  not  less  than  two  thousand  persons,  in- 
cluding about  twelve  hundred  slaves. 

[A.D.  1775.]  West  Florida  continued  under  the  govern- 
ment of  the  commandant  at  Pensacola,  a  mere  military  prov- 
ince, unlike  those  on  the  Atlantic  seaboard,  which  were  pro- 
vided with  a  regular  system  of  colonial  government,  under 
laws  enacted  by  a  colonial  Legislature  elected  by  the  people, 
subject  only  to  the  approval  of  the  king. 

The  cultivation  of  cotton,  whifch  had  been  introduced  by  the 
French,  was  encouraged  by  the  whole  commercial  policy  of 
the  parent  country.  Slaves  were  freely  introduced  as  an  ar- 
ticle of  trade,  for  the  extension  of  the  staple  products  of  cotton, 
indigo,  and  sugar.* 

From  the  year  1773  to  1775,  not  less  than  four  hundred  fami- 
lies arrived  in  West  Florida  by  way  of  the  Ohio  and  Missis- 
sippi Rivers.f  Many  of  these  were  from  the  New  England 
States,  and  from  Virginia  and  Maryland,  who  followed  in  the 
tide  of  emigration  which  had  begun  to  set  toward  the  Monon- 
gahela  and  the  Upper  Ohio.  Among  the  emigrants  from  New 
England  was  a  colony  introduced  by  General  Thaddeus  Ly- 
man, of  Connecticut.  He  had  been  a  brave  and  energetic  com- 
mander during  the  Canadian  wars,  and  had  obtained  a  large 
grant  from  the  king  to  be  located  in  West  Florida.  After 
many  difficulties  and  embarrassments,  and  after  selecting  a  lo- 
cation on  the  Yazoo  and  other  points,  he  finally  chose  another 
upon  the  waters  of  Bayou  Pierre.  J  The  grant  called  for  twenty 
thousand  acres,  and  covered  the  land  from  the  Grand  Gulf  Hills 
eastward  upon  the  Bayou  Pierre,  including  the  junction  of  the 
north  and  south  forks,  within  one  mile  of  the  present  town  of 
Port  Gibson.  Upon  this  location  he  proceeded  to  settle  his 
little  colony ;  but,  embarrassed  with  pecuniary  difficulties,  he 
was  soon  afterward  compelled  to  abandon  the  further  prosecu- 

*  Stoddart'i  Louisiana,  p.  74. 

t  See  Hokues'g  Aiiuals  of  the  United  States,  vol.  ii.,  p.  183,  184. 

X  Martin  erroneously  makes  the  location  of  this  grant  to  General  Lyman  at  the  Wal- 
nut Hills.  Although  he  explored  the  coontry  near  this  point,  and  as  far  as  the  Yazoo 
River,  yet  the  records  of  the  United  States  Land-office  at  Washington,  Mississippi,  the 
seat  of  tlie  territorial  govemnieut  from  1800  to  1817,  show  that  the  location  was  made 
upon  the  Bayou  Pierre,  in  the  present  county  of  Claiborne,  Mississippi.  In  this  case, 
the  king's  matidamus  was  made  in  favor  of  Thaddeus  Lyman,  and  was  dated  February 
2d,  1775,  for  twenty  thousand  acres. — See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  35. 


408 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IIL 


tion  of  the  enterprise,  and  with  a  few  friends,  who,  like  himself, 
had  become  old  and  discouraged,  retired  to  a  private  settlement 
made  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Panmure. 

Other  British  grants  were  made  in  the  Natchez  district  of 
West  Florida  about  this  time ;  but,  owing  to  the  growing  diffi- 
culties between  the  provinces  and  the  mother  country,  or  to 
some  other  cause,  they  were  never  fully  confirmed,  or  were  re- 
granted  by  the  Spanish  authorities,  who  soon  afterward  suc- 
ceeded to  the  government  of  Florida.* 

[A.D.  1776.]  At  the  commencement  of  the  war  of  the  Rev- 
olution, Florida  adhered  to  the  British  crown,  and  gave  no  aid 
or  countenance  to  the  Atlantic  provinces  in  their  struggle  for 
independence.  The  English  population  of  West  Florida  being 
loyal  subjects  of  the  British  monarchy,  became  odious  in  the 
eyes  of  the  confederated  colonists,  and  obnoxious  to  their  in- 
dignant resentment,  such  as  they  meted  out  to  "  British  Tories." 
Yet  they  took  no  active  part  in  the  contest  against  the  colonies. 
The  political  animosities  of  the  new  states  waxed  strong  against 
such  of  their  citizens  as  continued  to  adhere  to  the  royal  cause, 
and  they  receiving  but  little  favor,  and  often  gross  indignities 
from  their  Republican  neighbors,  in  many  instances  retired 
westward,  and  made  their  way  down  the  Mississippi,  seeking 
security  and  peace  among  their  loyal  countrymen  in  West 
Florida,  under  the  protection  of  the  British  flag.  Hence,  about 
this  time,  the  settlements  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi, 
from  the  Walnut  Hills  to  Baton  Rouge,  received  a  considerable 
accession  to  its  Anglo-American  population.  Here  they  con- 
tinued to  enjoy  peace  and  security  until  after  the  arms  of  Vir- 
ginia began  to  be  triumphant  in  the  West. 

The  Illinois  Country. — The  activity  and  zeal  of  the  British 

*  Among  the  British  grants  in  the  "  Natchez  District,"  now  on  file  in  the  land-o£Bce 
in  Washington,  Mississippi,  arc  the  following: 

Ist.  "  Ogdcn'a  Mandamus,"  made  in  favor  of  Amos  Ogden,  for  twenty-five  thousand 
acres,  located  on  the  north  side  of  the  Homochitto  lliver,  dated  October  27th,  1772. 

2d.  "  Lj-man's  Mandamus,"  made  to  Thaddeua  Lyman,  aud  dated  February  2d,  1775, 
for  twcntj'  thousand  acres,  located  on  the  Bayou  Pierre. 

3d.  "  Grant"  to  Doctor  John  Lorimer  for  two  thousand  acres,  dated  May  6th,  1776. 

4th.  "  Grant"  to  William  Grant  for  one  thousand  acres,  dated  May  6th,  1776,  near  the 
Walnut  HiUs. 

5th.  "  Grant"  to  William  Gamier,  dated  May  28th,  1773,  for  five  thousand  acres,  lo- 
cated on  the  Homochitto. 

6th.  "  Grant"  to  Augustin  Provost,  dated  December  31st,  1776,  for  five  thousand  acres, 
located  on  Cole's  Creek. 

Besides  these,  there  are  many  smaller  grants,  varying  from  five  hundred  to  one  thoa- 
sand  acres. 


A.D.  1776.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIIMM. 


400 


1776. 
near  the 


officers  at  the  different  posts  northwest  of  the  Ohio,  instiga- 
ting and  leading  their  savage  aUies  against  the  feeble  settle- 
ments east  of  the  Ohio  in  their  murderous  incursions,  was  the 
chief  cause  which  prematurely  involved  the  Illinois  population 
in  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  and  hastened  the  downfall  of  the 
royal  authority  in  this  portion  of  the  American  possessions,  and 
also  accelerated  the  loss  of  Florida.  As  we  have  elsewhere 
observed,*  the  British  dominion  was  not  formally  extended  over 
the  Illinois  and  Wabash  countries  until  the  spring  of  1765. 
After  the  defeat  which  Major  Loftus  had  experienced  in  March 
of  the  preceding  year,  the  attempt  to  send  troops  and  a  com- 
mandant to  that  region  had  been  deferred,  and  the  French  com- 
mandant, St.  Ange,  at  Fort  Chartres,  continued  to  exercise  au- 
thority under  the  laws  and  usages  of  France  as  formerly,  al- 
though it  was  known  that  the  country  was  a  British  province. 
[A.D.  1765.]  Early  in  the  spring  of  1765,  Captain  Stirling,  of 
the  British  army,  arrived  by  way  of  Detroit,  and  took  command 
of  Fort  Chartres,  as  commandant  of  the  Illinois  country,  under 
the  orders  of  General  Gage,  commander-in-chief  of  his  majes- 
ty's forces  in  America.  He  was  authorized  to  receive  the  al- 
legiance of  his  majesty's  new  Catholic  subjects,  and  to  institute 
an  organized  government,  by  introducing  the  English  laws  and 
usages  among  the  people.  He  was  also  instructed  to  guaran- 
ty to  the  French  population,  who  desired  to  remain  under  the 
dominion  of  Great  Britain,  the  free  enjoyment  of  their  liberty 
and  property,  the  free  exercise  of  their  religious  opinions,  and 
the  observance  of  all  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  At  the  same  time,  he  was  instructed  to  grant  permission 
freely  to  all  who  desired  to  retire  to  the  French  settlements  on 
the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi,  together  with  the  unrestrained 
removal  of  their  personal  property.  On  entering  upon  his  offi- 
cial duties,  he  made  known  to  the  inhabitants  the  proclamation 
of  General  Gage,  the  provisions  of  which  he  was  authorized  to 
enforce.  In  this  affectionate  proclamation  the  commander-in- 
chief  did  not  fail  to  close  with  the  humane  admonition  to  the  in- 
habitants that,  "by  a  wise  and  prudent  demeanor,  by  avoiding 
all  cause  of  complaint,"  and  by  "  acting  in  concert  with  his  maj- 
esty's officers,"  they  might  "  save  themselves  from  the  scourge 
of  a  bloody  war"\ 

•  See  book  ii.,  chap,  x.,  near  the  close  of  the  chapter. 

t  The  following  is  a  copy  of  General  Gage's  proclamation  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Illinois  country,  viz. : 


I 


410 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[dook  III. 


St.  Ang6  delivered  to  him  in  duo  form  the  fintress  of  Fort 
Chnrtrcs,  nnd  the  whole  territory  eastward  to  the  Ohio  River, 
after  which  he  nnd  his  garrison  of  one  and  twenty  men  retir- 
ed across  the  river  to  the  village  of  St.  Louis.  Many  of  the 
i''ren<'h,  preferring  to  leave  their  houses  and  fields  and  to  fol- 
low their  heloved  commandant,  promptly  declined  to  become 
subjects  of  Great  Britain.  Those  who  retired  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi settled  chieily  about  the  vicinity  of  8t.  Louis  and  Si. 
Genevieve,  the  latter  being  then  a  village  of  nearly  twelve 
years'  standing.*  The  former  had  been  selected  two  years 
before,  as  a  depot  for  the  Fur  Company  of  Louisiana. 

The  French  population  of  the  whole  Illinois  country,  from  the 
Mississippi  eastward  to  the  Wabash,  at  this  time  v.'ore  proba- 


I 


"  Proclamation. 

"Whoroaa,  hy  tho  ponro  concluded  at  Parii,  tho  10th  of  February,  1763,  the  conntry 
oftho  Illinoia  hai  bucii  cednd  to  hia  Britannic  majeaty,  and  the  taking  poaaoiaion  of  tho 
aaid  country  of  tlio  Illinoia,  by  the  troopa  of  hii  majeaty,  thougli  delayed,  haa  been  de- 
termined npon ;  we  have  found  it  good  to  make  known  tu  tlio  inhabitanta : 

"That  hia  majeaty  granta  to  the  inhabitanta  of  the  Illinoia  tho  liberty  of  tho  Catholic 
rolit(i(iii,  na  it  haa  already  been  granted  to  hia  aubjecta  in  Canada.  He  haa  conaequcnt- 
ly  given  the  moat  preciao  and  eiFoctive  ordera,  to  the  end  that  hia  new  Roman  Catholic 
aubjecta  of  the  Illinoia  may  cxurciao  tho  worahip  of  their  religion,  according  to  the  ritea 
of  the  Romiali  Church,  in  tho  aame  manner  aa  in  Canada. 

"  That  hia  majeaty,  morcoTer,  agreea  that  the  French  inhabitanta  or  other*,  who  have 
been  aubjecta  of  the  moat  Chriatian  king  (the  King  of  France),  may  retire  in  full  aafety 
and  freedom,  wherever  they  pleaae,  even  to  New  Orluana,  or  any  other  part  of  Louiai- 
ana ;  although  it  ihould  happen  that  tho  Spaniarda  take  puaieasion  of  it  in  the  name  of 
hia  Catholic  majeaty  (tho  King  of  Bpain),  and  they  may  Roll  their  eatatea,  provided  it 
be  to  aubjecta  of  hia  majeaty,  and  tranaport  their  effccta,  aa  well  aa  their  peraona,  with- 
out reatraint  upon  their  emigration,  under  any  prctunao  whatever,  except  in  conae- 
quence  of  dcbta,  or  of  criminal  proccasea.  * 

"  That  thoao  who  chooao  to  retain  their  lunda  and  become  aubjecta  of  hia  majeaty, 
ahall  enjoy  tiio  aamu  righta  and  privilegca,  the  aame  aecurity  for  their  peraona  and  ef- 
focta,  and  the  liberty  of  trade,  aa  the  old  aubjecta  of  tho  king. 

"  That  they  are  commanded  by  theae  prcaenta  to  take  the  oath  nf  fidelity  and  obe- 
dience to  hia  majnaty,  in  prcaence  of  Siour  Stirling,  captain  -f ''  Highland  regiment, 
the  bearer  hereof,  and  funiishod  with  our  full  powera  for  tl..    ,.   voae. 

"  That  wc  recommend  forcibly  to  tho  inhabitanta  to  conduct  tliemaelvea  like  good 
and  faithful  aubjecta,  avoiding,  by  a  wiae  and  prudent  demeanor,  all  canae  of  complaint 
against  them. 

"That  they  act  in  concert  with  hia  majeaty 'a  oiHcera,  ao  that  hia  troopa  may  take 
peaceable  poaacsaion  of  all  the  forts,  and  order  bo  kept  in  tho  country.  By  thia  meona 
alone  they  will  spare  hia  majesty  the  neceaaity  of  recurring  to  force  of  arms,  and  will 
find  tliemaelvea  aaved  from  tho  luourge  of  a  bloody  war,  and  of  all  the  ovila  which  tho 
march  of  an  enemy  into  their  country  would  draw  after  it. 

"  We  direct  that  theao  preaentf^  be  read,  pabliahcd,  and  poated  up  in  the  uaual  placca. 

"  Done  and  given  at  hcadijuartiira.  New  York,  aigned  with  our  hand,  acalod  with  our 
■eal  and  anna,  and  countersigned  byouraecrjtary,  thii  30th  of  December,  1764. 

"Thomas  <lAoi. 

"  By  hia  excellency,  O.  Maturin." 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  u.  321. 


#' 


A.D.  1708.] 


VAI.LBY    or   TUB    MIMIr»«IPP!. 


411 


majesty, 
and  ef- 


ay  tako 
18  muana 

and  will 
trhich  tho 


aAGi. 


I)ly  not  loss  than  five  thousand  persons,  inchidin^  al)Out  five 
hundred  negro  slaves.  Tho  number  was  suhse<iuontly  dimin- 
ished by  emitjration  to  Louisiana,  which  was  not  replaced  by 
Enj^lish  emigrants.  Ten  years  ntlerward,  the  population  of 
Kuskaskia  was  estimated  at  but  little  over  one  hundred  fami- 
lies, that  of  Cahokia  fifty  families,  and  of  Prairie  Dupont  and 
Prairie  du  Rocher  eacdi  fourteen  families. 

Three  months  after  the  arrival  of  ('aptain  Stirling,  he  died, 
and  left  the  office  of  commandant  vacant  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Mississippi.  In  thin  state  of  things,  the  excellent  commrndiint, 
St.  Angc,  returned  to  Fort  (/hartres,  and  resumed  tho  duties  of 
his  former  office  vmtil  a  successor  to  Captain  Stirling  should 
arrive  from  the  commander-in-chief.  Not  long  afterward, Ma- 
jor Frazer,  from  Fort  Pitt,  arrived  as  connnandant,  and  exer- 
cised an  arbitrary  authority  until  next  spring,  when  he  was  re- 
lieved by  Colonel  Reed,  who  also  exercised  his  authority  for 
eighteen  months*  in  an  oppressive  and  despotic  manner. 

[A.D.  1767.]  The  region  of  the  Illinois  and  Upper  Missis- 
sippi received  but  few  emigrants  from  the  British  provinces, 
and  the  population  in  that  quarter  remained,  during  the  Brit- 
ish dominion,  as  isolated  French  settlements  in  the  heart  of  an 
immense  savage  wilderness,  having  only  occasional  intercoinse 
with  Detroit,  Fort  Pitt,  and  New  Orleans,  by  means  of  agents 
and  traders. 

[A.D.  1768.]  On  the  5th  of  September,  1708,  Colonel  Reed, 
to  the  great  joy  of  the  French,  was  superseded  by  Lieutenant- 
colonel  Wilkins.  He  proceeded  to  organize  regular  courts  of 
justice  for  the  administration  of  the  laws,  in  all  matters  of  debt 
and  property.  The  first  court,  announced  by  his  proclamation 
of  November  21st,  consisted  of  seven  judges,  who  held  their 
first  term  at  Fort  Chartres  on  the  6th  of  December  following.-f 
The  people  claimed,  as  British  subjects,  the  right  of  trial  by 
jury ;  but  the  governor  refused  his  sanction.  Svibsequently, 
like  his  predeces'sors,  he  was  disposed  to  inflict  upon  the  peo- 
ple a  series  of  military  oppressions,  rather  than  cause  an  im- 
partial administration  of  justice.  The  French  gradually  be- 
came alienated  from  the  English  authorities,  and  many  retired 
to  their  friends  in  Louisiana,  west  of  the  Mississippi. 

*  Soo  Peck's  Gazetteer  of  Illinois,  p.  86.  Peck,  Brown,  and  others  call  this  com- 
mandant  erroneously  Major  Farmer. 

t  See  Brown's  History  of  lllinuis,  p.  S14.  Also,  Amorican  State  Papers,  vol.  ii.,  land 
laws,  p.  li:i  and  180. 


413 


IIIHTORY    nV    TIIK 


[rook  III. 


,  Ml 


[A. I).  1700.]  Fiiuly  ill  llio  following  yenr  In;  ln'^nn  to  traiiH- 
coimI  hid  nutliority  in  iniikin^  extensive  ^Mtintn  of  huid  to  a 
nuiplier  of  British  otlicoiH  and  liivoritcs;  on<l  "for  the  better 
Rcttluinent  of  the  rolony,  and  the  hetter  to  promote  hix  inujeH- 
ty'H  wervice,"  he  inodeNtly  crHiMonted  to  heroine  "  interented  in 
one  Hixth  part  thcreot."  Thns  he  wonUi  have  appropriated 
one  tliird  (»f  all  the  lands  in  Illinois;  and  Home  of  these  fraudu- 
lent grants  were  suhseipiently  roidirmed  hy  the  Ameri<*an  au- 
thorities.* 

Previous  to  the  year  177H,  Detroit  was  the  heachpiarters  of 
the  western  posts;  thoy  were  all  subordinate  to  the  (*onnnand- 
nnt  at  Detrcut.  From  this  point  a  trace  led  westward  hy  way 
of  the  Maumee,  an<l  across  to  the  Upper  Waliash,  and  then<re 
to  Post  St.  Vincent ;  and  thence  a  similar  trace,  or  Indian 
path,  led  westward  to  Kriskaskia,  and  other  points  upon  the 
Upper  Mississippi.  There  was  likewise  between  all  these 
posts  an  admirable  communication  by  water,  whitdi,  although 
more  circuitous,  served  for  the  transportationof  military  stores 
nnd  munitions  of  war. 

Detroit  at  this  time  was  n  village  containing  al)ont  one  Inm- 
dred  houses,  ranged  upon  narrow  streets  crossing  each  other 
at  right  angles,  and  containing  about  eight  hundred  inhabitants, 
chielly  French.  The  whole  village  was  surrounded  by  a  stock- 
ade nearly  (»ne  mile  in  circuit,  and  defended  by  block-houses 
and  bastions  at  the  angles.  The  entire  settlements  within  ten 
miles  of  the  town  comprised  about  two  thousand  inhabitants, 
residing  near  the  banks  of  the  Detroit  River  and  its  small  trib- 
utaries.f     The  greater  portion  of  these  were  Canadian  French. 

The  headquarters  of  the  Illinois  country,  previous  to  the  year 
1772,  was  Fort  ('hartres :  subsecpiently,  "Fort  Gage,"  a  wood- 
en stockaded  fort  opposite  the  town  of  Kaskaskia,  and  on  the 
east  bank  of  the  Kaskaskia  River,  was  the  headcjuarters  of  the 
commandant  of  Illinois. 

At  Cahokia,  on  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  thiee  miles  be- 
low St.  Louis,  was  a  small  post,  dependent  upon  Fort  Gage. 
Kaskaskia  itself  was  three  miles  from  the  bank  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, on  the  west  side  of  the  Kaskaskia  River,  about  five  miles 
above  its  mouth,  and  nearly  sixty-five  miles  below  St.  Louis. 
It  was  the  oldest  settlement  in  the  Illinois  country,  known  as 


*  8ee  Pock's  Gazetteer  of  Illinois,  p.  86.    Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  345  and  355. 
t  Imlay's  America,  London  edition  of  1797,  p.  505,  SOii. 


A.I).  1700.  J 


VAi.i.ev  or  TiiK  MiMMirttiirri. 


413 


les  be- 
Gage. 

Missis- 

e  miles 
Louis. 

awn  as 


'*()l(l  KitMkuHkia,"  often  doHigniitcd  by  the  French  sobri(|iiet  .1// 
K/i,  or,  InvurNocI,  Kti-ho. 

( >n  the  Wtibash,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  mileii  above  its 
mouth,  wuH  the  poHt  of  "  Fort  Narkvillc."  Thiii  pont,  on  the 
west  side  of  the  Wiibash,  nearly  opjioHite  the  ohi  town  of  Vin- 
(teniieN,  was  u  reguhir  Ntorka(hs  with  baNtions  and  u  few  pieceH 
of  (Minnon,  in  (diargo  of  an  olhiter  with  a  small  garriHon.  It  wau 
the  <»ld  Freiudi  St.  N'inciMil,  designate<l  by  the  Frenrh  often  a« 
"  Au  Puatc."  It  waH  on  the  direttt  line  of  communieution  be- 
tween Detroit  and  Kaskaskia. 

The  whohj  r<'gion  northwest  of  the  Ohio  was  commanded 
by  these  |>osts.  Arouml  IIk'Mi  the  Indians  eoiigregaled  annually 
to  receive  their  presents  and  winter  sujiplies  fr«»m  the  British 
agents,  and  in  barter  their  si  in»  inivi  furs  with  the  traders. 

'J' he  Old y  whitf:  idiitii'Uiuis  in  »'.'.  ihis  region  were  <romposed 
of  a  few  ignoranl,  halt- ''Vili/c  I  Frentdi,  who  had  remained  in 
the  «!ountry  .iftei  IIm-  British  >in!nority  wcs  extended  over  it, 
and  a  few  Tory  eiitf^^iantH  (ma  the  revoii'tiotkary  states,  who 
had  fled  from  the  iJisjplya  sujo  aini  th«>  U'lM/canco  oftficir  indig- 
nant count  ryir.en. 

The  poor  pafri.in-'tial  Fi'e.,r}>,  imHOnhi.-ti.  .ifcd  by  tiie  vices 
and  intrigues  of  r<'fmed  cii  iir..:tio;.,  kiu  m  r.ou.ii^  vi  l!ie  pe<»plc 
in  the  revolted  province^,  tx«M>,»it  v»'hut'uey  had  leriri".  thri'igh 
their  brethren  of  (MWiada.  or  \!  r(Migi>  tiieir  nev/  Fjn;.'LKii  j>.iislers. 
The  former  had  been  eng;!;^i!fl  witii  New  K  ig'iind  iii  uhnost 
continual  border  wars  for  iioixrly  a  fentury;  a»»d  fnere  was 
nothing  in  these  w.irti,  iiiHiigiiled  and  cuntrolled  ly  Firitish  cu- 
pidity, ui  anywise  c!>i<  ui.ited  tu  iurftlil  \\Xo  tlie  <..':inaJiuns  any 
exalted  ideas  of  the  ^* liostonais^'-  v  ho  wore  now  ;»voclaimed  by 
their  own  king  as  outlawed  rebels, 

With  the  British  authorities  in  this  i"gw»r,,  it  had  been  the 
uniform  policy,  froin  the  bcgiiJ^iig  of  the  Revolutionary  war, 
to  prevent  an)  '.•.UMCourse  between  the  French  population  and 
the  revolted  piv»vlacc(s  VMi'  h  i.uxl  renounced  the  British  domin- 
ion. It  was  v.'ui!  ktnown  to  the  commandants  that  the  revolted 
provin«.'es  lheir;sid/es  could  not  entertain  toward  England  a 
more  it  ijjlacalile  hatred  than  was  hereditary  in  the  French. 
Beyond  the  reach  of  aid  or  protection  from  the  English  forces, 
the  authorities  in  these  regions  employed  every  moral  means 
to  reconcile  the  French  to  their  new  allegiance,  and  to  concili- 
ate their  national  prejudices.     At  the  same  time,  they  did  not 


m 


414 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


fail  carefully  to  instill  into  their  minds  the  utmost  horror  of  the 
fierce  and  ruthless  character  of  the  provincial  rebels,  who  were 
more  to  be  dreaded  than  even  the  hostile  Indians  themselves ; 
and  of  all  these  rebel  "  Bostonais,"  none  were  more  terrible 
than  the  Virginia  "  long-knives."* 

[A.D.  1778.]  The  Loss  of  the  Illinois  Country, — From  the 
first  act  of  hostilities  by  the  royal  troops  against  the  revolted 
colonies,  the  northwestern  savages  had  been  associated  as  al- 
lies of  Great  Britain,  and  had  been  employed  by  the  British 
commanders  to  lay  waste  the  western  frontiers  of  Virginia  and 
Pennsylvania,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Oiiio.  After  a  bloody 
partisan  warfare  of  nearly  two  years  upon  the  western  settle- 
ments, the  Governor  of  Virginia  adopted  the  plan  of  Major 
George  Rogers  Clark  for  suppressing  the  terrible  incursions  of 
the  northwestern  Indians.f 

Moreover,  Virginia,  in  virtue  of  her  royal  charter,  claimed 
all  the  territory  westward  between  the  parallels  of  36°  30'  and 
40°  north  latitude,  as  far  as  the  Mississippi ;  and  the  British  posts 
on  the  Wabash,  the  Illinois,  and  the  Upper  Mississippi  were 
considered  properly  within  the  chartered  limits  of  Virginia. 
These  posts,  as  subordinate  to  Detroit,  were  found  to  be  the 
actual  source  of  all  the  Indian  incursions  which  had  been  sent 
against  the  exposed  frontier  of  Virginia  west  of  the  mountains, 
from  Fort  Pitt  southward  to  the  Kentucky  River.  From  these 
points  the  British  officers  and  emissaries  operated  upon  the  In- 
dian tribes,  which  were  dispersed  over  the  whole  northwestern 

*  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  chap.  iii. 

t  During  the  years  1775  and  1776,  Lord  Dunmore,  the  royal  governor  of  Virginia. 
driven  by  public  odium  from  his  capital,  had  been  cpmpcllcd  by  his  fears  to  seek  an 
aaylnm  on  board  one  of  his  majesty's  sbips-of-war,  from  which  he  planned  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  frontier  settlements  near  the  Ohio  River  and  its  tributaries.  For  this  pur- 
pose, through  a  special  agent  and  emissary,  Dr.  John  Connolly,  former  commandant  at 
Fort  Pitt  and  of  the  district  of  "  West  Augfista,"  an  enterprising  and  audacious  man, 
his  lordship  concerted  measures  with  the  commandants  of  Detroit  and  Fort  Oage  for 
the  purpose  of  arming  the  northwestern  savages  against  the  defenseless  frontier  inhab- 
itants. Connolly  with  impunity  passed  the  western  settlements,  in  possession  of  se- 
cret orders  from  Lord  Dunmore  to  the  commandants  and  agents  c  <  the  West  for  carry- 
ing out  his  plan  of  operations  in  this  quarter.  In  this  nefarious  employment,  Connolly, 
during  the  years  1775  and  1776,  aided  by  the  "  Loyalists,"  had  passed  to  and  from  De- 
troit several  times,  keeping  his  correspondence  with  Lord  Dunmore  and  other  "Tories" 
a  profound  secret,  until  he  was  finally  detected  and  arrested  on  the  borders  of  Mary- 
land, on  his  route  to  Detroit ;  and  his  papers  were  published  by  order  of  Congress.  His 
capture  and  the  disclosures  made  by  his  corresfmndence  led  to  the  expedition  of  Colouel 
Clark  against  the  post  of  Kaskaskia,  and  the  final  interruption  of  tlie  British  operations 
northwest  of  the  Ohio. — See  Botta's  History  of  the  American  War  of  Independence, 
vol.  i,  p.  950. 


A.D.  1778.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


415 


territory,  from  the  Ohio  and  the  great  lakes  westward  to  the 
Upper  Mississippi:  from  these  points  were  planned  and  sup- 
plied the  numerous  hostile  incursions  which  had  spread  desola- 
tion and  blood  along  the  wide  frontier  east  of  the  Ohio ;  and 
these  were  the  points  at  which  the  savages  were  supplied  with 
arms,  ammunition,  and  clothing,  to  enable  them  to  carry  on 
their  murderous  warfare  into  the  remote  settlements.  To 
these  points,  too,  they  carried  their  captives,  torn  from  their 
families,  and  the  scalps  of  their  murdered  victims,  as  trophies 
of  their  prowess  and  evidence  of  their  industry. 

As  the  numerous  settlements  scattered  over  an  extensive 
frontier  region  could  not  be  protected  against  the  midnight 
prowlings  of  small  detached  parties  penetrating  every  portion 
of  the  country  unseen,  the  only  effectual  means  of  security  w^as 
to  dry  up  the  fountain,  or,  in  Western  phrase,  to  cut  up  the  tree 
by  the  roots.  At  length  the  governor,  Patrick  Henry,  with  the 
Executive  Council,  prompted  and  guided  by  the  genius  and  en- 
terprise of  Colonel  George  R.  Clark,  set  on  foot  a  secret  expedi- 
tion for  the  reduction  of  the  British  posts  on  the  Upper  Missis- 
sippi and  upon  the  Wabash  Rivers.  What  the  commonwealth 
lacked  in  men  and  means  was  fully  supplied  by  the  courage  and 
daring  intrepidity  of  her  frontier  defenders.  The  expedition 
for  the  reduction  of  these  posts,  these  fountains  of  Indian  mas- 
sacre, was  intrusted  to  Colonel  Clark,  yet  with  strict  injunctions 
to  treat  with  humanity  such  of  the  enemy  as  the  chances  of  war 
might  place  in  his  power.* 

*  The  following  ii  a  copy  of  the  initractions  issued  to  Colonel  Clark  for  his  govern- 
ment in  the  projected  expedition,  viz. : 

"  Virginia  in  Council,  Willianuburg,  January  Sd,  1778. 

"LiBUTENANT-COLONBL   QEORGE  ROGERS  CLARK, — 

"  You  are  to  proceed  with  all  convenient  speed  to  raise  seven  companies  of  soldien, 
to  consist  of  fifty  men  each,  oflScered  in  the  usual  manner,  and  armed  most  properly  ibr 
the  enterprise,  and  with  this  force  attack  the  British  fort  at  Kaskaskia. 

"  It  is  conjectured  that  there  are  many  pieces  of  cannon  and  military  stores  to  con- 
siderable amount  at  that  place,  the  taking  and  preservation  of  which  would  be  a  valu- 
able acquisition  to  the  state.  If  you  are  so  fortunate,  therefore,  as  to  succeed  in  your 
expedition,  you  will  take  every  possible  merisure  to  secure  the  artillery  and  stores,  and 
whatever  may  advantage  the  state. 

"For  the  transportation  of  the  troops,  provisions,  &c.,  down  the  Ohio,  you  are  to  ap- 
ply to  the  commanding  officer  at  Fort  Pitt  for  boats ;  and  during  the  whole  transaction 
you  are  to  take  especial  care  to  keep  the  true  destination  of  your  force  secret ;  its  suc- 
cess depends  upon  this.  Orders  are  therefore  given  to  secure  the  two  men  from  Kas- 
kaskia.   Similar  conduct  will  be  proper  in  similar  cases. 

"  It  tjt  earnestly  de-iircd  that  you  thow  humanity  to  such  British  subjects  and  other 
persons  as  fall  in  your  hands.  If  the  white  inhabitants  of  that  post  and  the  neighbor- 
hood will  give  undoubted  evidence  of  their  attachment  to  this  state  (for  it  is  certain  they 


{|!!l 


ijlilii 


ml 


'11 


416 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


The  entire  expedition  was  to  consist  at  most  of  three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  men,  or  seven  companies  of  fifty  men  each,  or 
such  portion  of  them  as  could  be  enlisted  for  the  enterprise. 
Yet  that  number  could  not  be  spared  from  the  exposed  frontier 
settlements,  and  he  was  compelled  at  last  to  execute  the  hazard- 
ous enterprise  with  less  than  half  the  number  authorized  by  the 
governor.  • 

With  no  other  means  than  twuve  hundred  dollars  in  depre- 
ciated paper,  and  an  order  for  transports  and  supplies  of  pow- 
der and  ammunition,  and  a  promised  bounty  of  three  hundred 
acres  of  land  to  each  private,  Colonel  Clark,  in  January,  set  out 
from  Williamsburg  for  Fort  Pitt.  Encountering  great  difficul- 
ties in  recruiting  his  companies  from  settlements  already  too 
feeble  for  their  own  protection,  he  succeeded,  by  extraordinary 
exertions,  in  assembling  at  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio  less  than  six 
incomplete  companies  about  the  middle  of  June.  •  Selecting 
from  his  whole  force  four  companies  of  picked  men,  under  well- 
known  captains,  he  prepared  to  descend  the  river  upon  the 
hazardous  enterprise.  The  companies  were  commanded  by 
Captains  Montgomery,  Bowman,  Helm,  and  Harrod ;  and  each 
man,  after  the  Indian  custom,  was  armed  with  a  rifle,  toma- 
hawk, and  scalping-knife.  About  the  24th  of  June  he  com- 
menced his  voyage  down  the  river,  after  communicating  to  his 
officers  the  object  and  design  of  the  expedition.  The  whole 
was  conveyed  in  a  number  of  keel-boats,  and  the  destination 
was  Kaskaskia. 

live  within  its  limits)  by  taking  the  test  prescribed  by  law,  and  by  every  other  way  and 
means  in  their  power,  let  them  be  treated  as  fdlow-citizens,  and  their  persona  and  prop- 
erly duly  secured.  Assistance  and  protection  against  all  enemies  whatever  shall  be 
afibrded  them,  and  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia  is  pledged  to  accomplish  it.  But 
if  these  people  will  not- accede  to  these  reasonable  demands,  they  most  feel  the  miser- 
ies of  war,  under  the  direction  of  that  humanity  that  has  hitherto  distinguished  Ameri- 
cans, and  which  it  is  expected  you  will  ever  consider  the  rule  of  your  conduct,  and  from 
■mhich  you  are  in  no  instance  to  depart. 

"  The  corps  you  arc  to  command  are  to  receive  the  pay  and  allowance  of  militia,  and 
to  act  under  the  laws  and  regulations  of  this  state  now  in  fores  as  militia.  The  inhab- 
itants at  this  post  will  be  informed  by  you,  that  in  case  they  accede  to  the  oifers  of 
becoming  citizens  of  this  commonwealth,  a  proper  garrison  will  be  maintained  among 
them,  and  every  attention  bestowed  to  render  their  commerce  beneficial,  the  fairest 
prospects  being  opened  to  the  dominions  of  Franco  and  Spain. 

"  It  is  in  contemplation  to  establish  a  post  near  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  Cannon  will 
be  wanted  to  fortify  it.  Part  of  those  at  Kaskaskia  will  be  easily  brought  thither,  or 
otherwise  secured,  as  circumstances  may  make  necessary. 

"  You  are  to  ajiply  to  General  Hand  for  powder  and  lead  necessary  for  this  cxpedi* 
tion.  If  he  can  not  supply  it,  the  person  who  has  that  which  Captain  Lynn  brought 
from  Orleans  can.  Load  was  sent  to  Hampshire  by  my  orders,  and  that  may  be  deliv- 
ered to  you.    Wishing  you  success,  I  am,  sir, 

"  Your  humble  servant,  P.  Henry." 


A.D.  1778.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


417 


lilitia,  and 
i'ho  iiiliab- 
oiTers  of 
id  among 
he  faireit 


KNRY." 


Arrangements  for  additional  supplies  had  been  made  by  the 
Federal  authorities,  through  Captain  William  Lynn  and  Cap- 
tain James  Willing,  to  be  obtained  from  the  Spaniards  in  New 
Orleans,  for  the  supply  of  all  the  posts  in  the  region  of  the  Ohio, 
as  well  as  for  the  expedition  to  the  Upper  Mississippi. 

Abou'.  the  last  of  June  the  expedition  ar  ived  at  the  "  Old 
Cherokee  Fort,"  below  the  mouth  of  the  Tennessee,  and  about 
forty  mil^s  above  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  At  this  point  im- 
portant information  was  received  relative  to  the  actual  condi- 
tion of  the  British  posts  on  the  Upper  Mississippi.  Here,  hav- 
ing obtained  experienced  guides  through  the  wilderness,  Colo- 
nel Clark  determined  to  march  through  by  land  and  take  Kas- 
kaskia  by  surprise.  Having  sunk  his  boats  for  concealment, 
he  set  out  with  his  force,  and  plunged  through  the  pathless  wil- 
derness, across  extensive  low  grounds  and  marshes,  a  distance 
of  nearly  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles,  each  man  bearing 
upon  his  back  his  scanty  rations,  baggage,  and  camp  equipage, 
and  encouraged  by  the  dauntless  energy  of  their  commander, 
who  shared  equally  with  his  soldiers  every  hardship,  and  led 
the  way. 

After  a  laborious  and  difficult  march  of  several  days  through 
a  trackless  wilderness  of  swamps,  flats,  open  woods,  and  prai- 
ries, in  which  even  the  guides  were  bewildered,  they  arrived, 
unperceived,  in  the  vicinity  of  Kaskaskia,  on  the  evening  of 
July  4th,  1778.  To  avoid  discovery,  the  troops  remained  con- 
cealed in  the  woods  on  the  east  side  of  Kaskaskia  River,  with- 
in two  miles  of  the  town,  until  night  had  obscured  their  move- 
ments from  observation.  Having  procured  boats  for  crossing 
the  river,  about  midnight  Colonel  Clark  prepared  to  advance 
against  the  enemy.  Addressing  his  men  in  a  short  and  sen- 
tentious speech,  he  concluded  by  reminding  them  "  that  the 
town  and  fort  were  to  be  taken  at  all  hazards."  A  portion  of 
the  troops,  under  command  of  the  fearless  Captain  Helm,  crossed 
the  river  to  the  town,  and,  having  taken  it  by  surprise,  the  prin- 
cipal street  was  secured  while  the  inhabitants  were  asleep  in 
their  beds.  Every  avenue  was  guarded  before  they  were  ap- 
prised of  their  captivity. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  Fort  Gage  was  secured  in 
like  manner  by  the  remainder  of  the  force,  under  Colonel  Clark 
himself.  The  garrison  and  the  sleeping  commandant.  Lieuten- 
ant-governor Rocheblave,  were  awakened  from  their  peaceful 

Vol.  I.—D  d 


418 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[book  III. 


slumbers  only  to  find  themselves  prisoners  of  war.  Appre- 
hending no  danger  at  this  remote  point,  not  even  a  sentinel  was 
on  duty,  nor  a  gate  secured.  Colonel  Clark,  leading  his  col- 
umn, was  conducted  silently  by  a  guide  he  had  captured,  through 
a  postern  gate  into  the  open  I'ort,  and  while  with  his  sturdy 
warriors  he  surrounded  the  sleeping  garrison  and  controlled 
the  defenses  of  the  post,  the  fearless  Simon  Kenton,  at  the  head 
of  a  file  of  men,  advanced  softly  to  the  apartment  of  the  com- 
mander. While  quietly  reposing  by  his  wife,  he  was  aroused 
by  a  gentle  touch  only  to  behold  his  own  captivity,  and  to  or- 
der the  unconditional  surrender  of  the  fort  and  its  defenders.* 

The  town  of  Kaskaskia,  containing  about  two  hundred  and 
fifty  houses,  was  completely  surrounded,  and  every  avenue  se- 
curely guarded  to  prevent  escape  or  intercourse ;  runners  were 
sent  to  warn  the  people  in  the  French  tongue  that  every  enemy 
found  in  the  streets  would  be  instantly  shot  down  ;  at  the  same 
time,  they  were  convinced,  by  the  terrible  shout  and  yelling  of 
the  troops  around  the  town,  that  they  were  all  prisoners  of  war. 
A  strict  patrol  was  kept  on  duty  during  the  night  throughout 
the  town,  and  a  sergeant's  guard,  passing  through  the  streets 
and  entering  every  house,  succeeded  in  completely  disarming 
the  inhabitants  in  the  course  of  two  hours.  The  troops  in  the 
suburbs  of  the  place  were  directed  to  keep  up,  during  the  remain- 
der of  the  night,  a  continual  tumult  and  whooping,  after  the  In- 
dian fashion,  while  the  inhabitants  were  required  to  observe  the 
most  profound  silence.  All  intercourse  from  house  to  house  was 
strictly  prohibited,  and  the  terror  inspired  was  general  and  ap- 
palling. At  the  same  time,  Colonel  Clark  had  full  possession 
of  the  fort  and  its  artillery,  which  commanded  the  whole  town 
from  the  opposite  side  of  the  river. 

Such  was  the  work  of  the  first  night,  during  which,  in  the 
true  spirit  of  generous  chivalry,  this  handful  of  brave  back- 
woodsmen accomplished  one  of  the  most  important  conquests 
in  the  West,  without  the  shedding  of  one  drop  of  blood,  or  com- 
mitting the  slightest  outrage  upon  the  conquered  people.f    The 

*  Approaching  the  fort,  a  solitary  light  issued  from  a  house  outside  the  stockade,  and 
n  corpoinl's  guard  was  dispatched  to  secure  the  party  in  the  house.  Amon^  them  wns 
a  Peiuisylvaiiian,  who  entertained  but  little  affection  for  the  English  name,  and  who 
cheerfully  served  as  a  guide  to  Kenton's  detachment,  entering  the  stockade  tlirouirli  a 
small  postern  gate.— Sep  Hall's  Sketches  of  the  West,  vol.  ii.,  p.  118,  119.  Also,  Uut- 
ler's  Kentucky,  p.  53-55. 

t  There  has  been  much  discrepancy  among  authors  relative  to  tlie  actual  £irco  of 
Colonel  Clark's  expedition,  which  proceeded  from  the  "  Falla  of  Ohio"  with  him  for  the 


A.D.  1778.] 


VALLEY    OF   TIIK    MISSISSIPPI. 


419 


in  the 

back- 

iquests 

>r  com- 

The 

Ikade,  and 

Ithcm  was 

and  who 

|ti>roairh  a 

Vlso,  But- 

Ll  force  of 
Im  for  the 


wife  of  M.  Rocheblave,  under  the  courtesy  of  the  warrior  to  fe- 
male prerogative,  artfully  concealed  his  public  papers,  which 
Colonel  Clark  did  not  succeed  in  obtaining. 

On  the  day  following.  Colonel  Clark  proceeded  to  organize 
the  aflairs  of  the  conquered  post.  Having  obtained  ample  in- 
telligence of  the  state  of  the  defenses  in  the  vicinity,  and  hav- 
ing properly  secured  his  prisoners  and  all  suspicious  persons, 
he  ordered  the  troops  to  be  withdrawn  from  the  town  behind 
an  eminence  in  view.  All  communication  between  suspicious 
persons  and  the  ti-oops  was  strictly  prohibited,  and  several 
militia  officers  in  the  British  service  were  unceremoniously 
placed  in  irons.  An  air  of  stern  severity  and  prompt  decision 
was  assumed  by  the  colonel,  which  struck  terror  into  the  citi- 
zens ;  every  movement  was  made  with  the  most  rigid  military 
discipline,  enforced  by  the  severest  penalties  ;  the  most  unqual- 
ified submission  was  required'from  every  individual  in  the  town, 
which  was  placed  under  strict  martial  law ;  his  words  were 
few  and  stern ;  and  a  general  gloom  appeared  to  gather  over 
every  countenance.  They  were  now  prisoners  of  war  to  that 
inexorable  enemy,  whom  they  had  been  taught  to  view  as  the 
most  terrible  of  the  "  Bostonais,"  and  all  their  fears  and  appre- 
hensions were  about  to  be  realized. 

At  length  the  village  priest,  Father  Gibault,  at  the  head  of 
six  principal  men  of  the  town,  was  deputed  to  wait  upon  the 
American  commander  to  supplicate  his  mercy  and  to  deprecate 
his  vengeance.  They  were  introduced  to  him  at  his  quarters, 
where  he  and  his  officers  were  seated.  At  the  first  sight  of 
the  sturdy  warriors.  Father  Gibault  and  his  associates  for  some 
minutes  were  almost  speechless ;  all  their  fears  and  prejudices 
were  more  than  realized  in  the  rough  and  severe  features  of 
the  men,  no  less  than  in  their  tattered  and  soiled  apparel.     The 

reduction  of  Kaskaskia.  Some  give  tlie  number  at  three  hundred  men,  and  others  lesa. 
The  fact  is  as  follows  :  that  with  all  his  cfiurts  and  extraordinary  czertiuns,  lie  suc- 
ceeded iu  recruiting  only  four  companies  at  his  rendezvous  on  Com  Island,  after  hbv- 
ing  succeeded  in  raising  an  additional  number  of  twenty  men  from  the  vicinitj'  of  "  the 
falls,"  and  from  Harrod's  Station.  It  was  here  he  became  acquainted  with  the  brave 
Captain  Montgomery,  "  an  Irishman,  ami  full  of  fight,"  who  engaged  in  the  enterprise 
with  great  ardor ;  also,  Simon  Kenton,  a  pioneer  of  Kentucky,  and  a  number  of  resolute 
pionaers.  After  a  number  of  desertions  and  the  rejection  of  the  faint  hcart<:(l.  there  re- 
mained only  one  hundred  and  iiily-tbrce  fighting  men,  according  to  General  Kenton's 
■tatemciit,  who  served  through  the  campaign.  These  were  organized  into  four  incom- 
|.<lete  companies,  under  the  four  captains  named  in  the  text. — See  M'Donald'8  Sketches 
of  Bimon  Kenton  and  others,  p.  319.  This  is  probably  the  most  authentic  account  of  Uiis 
extraordinary  expedition.— Sec  Hall's  Sketches  of  the  West,  vol.  ii.,  p.  lie. 


420 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book  iir. 


reverend  father  at  length  spoke,  and  stated  that  they  had  one 
small  request  to  make  of  the  American  commander,  which  they 
desired  as  a  special  favor. 

As  the  people  expected  to  be  torn  from  each  other,  and  prob- 
ably separated  forever,  they  begged,  through  him,  to  be  per- 
mitted first  to  assemble  in  the  church  to  take  a  farewell  of  each 
other.  Their  request  was  granted  ;  but  they  were  warned  not 
to  attempt  to  leave  the  town.  The  colonel's  replies  were  la- 
conic and  austere.  The  deputation  were  disposed  to  continue 
the  interview  ;  but,  with  a  wave  of  the  hand,  they  were  inform- 
ed that  he  had  no  leisure  for  further  intercourse,  and  they  re- 
tired. The  whole  village  attended  at  church,  and  at  length 
retired  to  their  houses.  The  deputation  again  waited  upon 
Colonel  Clark,  and  tendered  "  their  thanks  for  the  indulgence 
they  had  received."  They  further  continued,  "  they  were  sens- 
ible that  theirs  was  the  fate  of  war,  and  they  could  well  sub- 
mit to  lose  their  property ;"  but  they  prayed  not  to  be  separa- 
ted from  their  wives  and  children,  and  that  something  might  be 
allowed  for  their  support.  They  declared  that  heretofore  in 
their  conduct  they  had  only  obeyed  their  commandants,  as 
their  duty  required ;  that  they  were  ignorant  of  the  nature  of 
the  contest  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain ;  and 
that  many  of  them  felt  more  favorably  inclined  toward  the 
people  of  the  United  States  than  they  dared  avow. 

At  this  time,  when  their  anxiety  and  fears  were  most  excit- 
ed, they  were  thus  sternly  addressed  by  the  commander : 
'"  Do  you  mistake  us  for  savages  ?  From  your  language,  sure- 
ly you  do.  Do  you  think  Americans  will  strip  women  and 
children,  and  take  the  bread  out  of  their  mouths  ?  My  coun- 
trymen disdain  to  make  war  upon  helpless  innocence.  To  pre- 
vent the  hor'  ors  of  Indian  butchery  upon  our  own  wives  and 
children,  we  have  taken  arms  and  penetrated  to  this  remote 
strong-hold  of  Indian  and  British  barbarity,  and  not  for  despica- 
ble plunder.  The  King  of  France  has  now  united  his  power- 
ful arms  with  those  of  America,  and  the  contest  will  soon  be 
ended.  The  people  of  Kaskaskia  may  side  with  either  party ; 
their  property  and  families  shall  be  safe ;  their  religion  shall 
not  be  molested  by  Americans.  To  verify  my  words,  go  tell 
your  fellow-citizens  they  are  at  liberty  to  do  as  they  please, 
without  apprehension  of  danger  from  me.  I  know  they  are 
convinced  since  my  arrival  that  they  have  been  misinformed 


A.D.  1778.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


421 


by  British  officers  as  to  the  character  of  Americans.  Your 
friends  shall  be  released  from  confinement." 

The  deputation  attempted  to  apologize  for  the  imputation 
implied  against  the  American  character,  but  it  was  unnecessa< 
ry ;  they  were  desired  to  communicate  his  declaration  to  the 
people.  In  a  few  moments  the  gloom  and  dejection  of  the 
whole  town  was  changed  into  the  extravagance  of  joy.  The 
bells  rang  their  loudest  peals,  and  the  church  was  crowded 
with  grateful  hearts  offering  up  to  God  their  devout  thanks  for 
their  unexpected  deliverance  from  all  the  horrors  they  had  an- 
ticipated. 

The  people,  thus  relieved  from  a  state  of  fearful  anxiety  and 
bitter  suspense,  made  the  most  unreserved  expressions  of  their 
admiration  for  the  generous  conduct  of  the  American  command- 
er and  his  brave  associates  in  arms ;  at  the  same  time  they 
professed  their  firm  attachment  to  the  cause  and  government 
of  the  United  States,  and  of  the  commonwealth  of  Virginia 
especially. 

On  the  evening  of  the  same  day.  Colonel  Clark  dispatched 
a  detachment  of  troops  under  Captain  Bowman  to  surprise  and 
capture  the  post  and  village  of  Cahokia,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Mississippi.  The  capture  of  this  post  was  effected  with  the 
same  secrecy  and  celerity  which  characterized  the  movements 
upon  Kaskaskia.  In  this  measure  Captain  Bowman  was  aided 
by  many  of  the  citizens  of  the  latter  place,  who  volunteered  to 
serve  as  guides,  and  to  lend  their  friendly  influence  with  their 
countrymen  at  Cahokia  to  insure  the  successful  issue  of  the 
enterprise.*     The  people  gladly  espoused  the  American  cause. 

Every  post  and  settlement  on  the  Upper  Mississippi  having 
been  secured.  Colonel  Clark  proceeded  to  reorganize  the  civil 
government  by  placing  in  office  chiefly  those  who  were  citi- 
zens of  the  country.  The  people  rejoiced  at  the  change,  and 
acknowledged  themselves  a  colony  dependent  on  Virginia,  well 
pleased  with  the  protection  of  the  United  States,  which  were 
now  at  war  with  the  hereditary  enemy  of  France.f 

In  the  mean  time.  Colonel  Clark  had  dispatched  Captain 
Montgomery  with  his  imperious  and  insolent  prisoner,  Governor 
Rocheblave,  under  a  strong  guard,  to  Richmond,  to  be  dealt  with 
as  a  prisoner  of  war.  Simon  Kenton,  with  dispatches  to  Ken- 
tucky, was  directed  to  take  the  post  of  St.  Vincent  in  his  route, 

*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  57,  58.  t  See  M'Donold'a  Sketches,  p.  220. 


422 


HISTORY    or   THE 


[book   III. 


and  by  a  confidential  messenger  transmit  to  Kaskaskia  a  minute 
account  of  the  condition  of  that  post  and  the  feelings  of  the 
people.  In  this  hazardous  duty,  Kenton  acquitted  himself  with 
his  usual  intrepidity.  Having  reconnoitered  the  post  and  town 
for  three  nights,  lying  concealed  by  day,  he  transmitted  the 
result  of  his  discoveries  to  his  commander,  and  proceeded  on 
his  route  to  "  the  Falls." 

On  the  18th  of  July,  the  inhabitants  of  Vincennes,  at  the  rec- 
ommendation of  Father  Gibault,  parish  priest  of  Kaskaskia^ 
threw  oiT  their  allegiance  to  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  and 
voluntarily  declared  themselves  citizens  of  the  United  States 
and  of  the  State  of  Virginia.  The  commandant  of  the  Wabash, 
Captain  Abbot,  being  absent  at  Detroit,  and  the  post  at  Vin- 
cennes being  protected  by  only  a  small  garrison.  Colonel  Clark 
early  in  August,  having  appointed  Captain  Helm  commandant 
of  Fort  Sackville,  and  '*  agent  for  Indian  affairs  in  the  depart- 
ment of  the  Wabash,"  dispatched  him  with  a  small  garrison, 
to  take  possession  of  the  post  of  St.  Vincent,  and  to  await  the 
arrival  of  re-enforcements  from  Virginia.  The  new  command- 
ant was  received  with  acclamation  by  the  people,  and  entered 
upon  his  official  duties.  Instructed  by  Colonel  Clark,  he  soon 
succeeded,  by  his  address  and  influence,  in  convening  an  In- 
dian council,  attended  by  the  great  Wabash  chief  Tobacco,  or 
"Grand  Door,"  with  whom,  after  some  delay,  he  eflfected  a 
treaty,  which  conciliated  the  Wabash  tribes  as  far  north  as 
Ouiatenon  and  the  Wea  towns. 

September  came,  and  but  few  recruits  from  Virginia  ar- 
rived. A  new  difficulty  now  presented  to  the  commander ;  the 
troops  had  been  enlisted  for  only  three  months,  and  the  term 
of  service  with  the  greatest  portion  of  them  was  about  to  ex- 
pire. To  remedy  this  difficulty,  he  exercised  the  full  extent  of 
his  discretionary  powers,  and  in  the  emergency  determined  to 
re-enlist  upon  new  terms  such  of  his  men  as  were  willing  to 
continue  in  the  service.  Seventy  of  his  men,  including  Simon 
Kenton,  determined  to  return  to  Kentucky ;  the  remainder  re- 
entered the  service,  associated  with  one  company  of  the  resi- 
dent inhabitants  under  their  own  officers.  With  these  he  or- 
ganized two  garrisons,  one  under  Captain  Williams  at  Kaskas- 
kia, and  one  under  Captain  Bowman  at  Cahokia. 

Colonel  William  Linn,  who  had  entered  the  campaign  as  a 
volunteer,  returned  to  Kentucky  in  charge  of  the  discharged 


A.D.  1778.] 


VALLEY    OF  TUB    MlSniSSIPPI. 


43S 


larged 


recruits,  with  orders  to  erect  a  stockade  at  the  "  Falls  of  the 
Ohio."  The  sovereignty  of  Virginia  was  fully  extended  over 
the  Illinois  and  Wabash  countries,  as  known  to  the  British  au' 
thorities. 

Before  the  close  of  September,  Colonel  Clark  had  commenced 
his  negotiations  with  the  Indian  tribes  occupying  the  regions 
drained  by  the  Illinois  and  Upper  Mississippi  Rivers.  Believing 
it  impolitic,  and  a  mistaken  estimate  of  the  Indian  character,  to 
invite  them  to  treaties  of  peace  and  friendship,  he  lost  no  op< 
portunity  of  impressing  them  with  the  power  of  the  Ameri- 
cans and  the  high  sense  of  honor  whic'i  regulated  all  their  mil- 
itary operations,  no  less  than  the  unalterable  determination  to 
punish  their  enemies.  Long  acquainted  with  the  Indian  char- 
acter, he  maintained  his  dignified  and  stern  reserve  until  they 
should  ask  for  peace  and  treaties  ;  and  he  fought  them  fiercely 
until  they  did  sue  for  peace.  When  he  treated  with  them,  he 
avoided  many  presents,  because  they  evinced  to  the  Indian  that 
those  who  gave  them  were  moved  by  fear  of  their  vengeance. 
In  all  his  negotiations  with  the  Indians,  he  impressed  them  by  his 
manner,  his  fearless  and  stern  reserve,  as  well  as  by  his  prompt 
decision,  with  a  fear  and  terror  of  his  authority  which  had 
been  entirely  unknown  before.* 

*  To  ^vo  the  reader  lome  idea  of  Colonel  Clark'a  manner  cf  intercoarao  witli  the  In- 
dians, the  followinf<  akctch  of  an  interview  and  ipeech  may  be  talien.  At  the  first  of 
his  treaties,  the  different  parties  of  white  and  red  men  were  assembled,  when  the  In- 
dians, being  petitioners,  opened  the  council  by  a  chief,  who  advanced  to  tlie  table  at 
which  Colonel  Clark  was  sitting,  "  with  the  belt  of  peace  in  his  hand ;  another  follow- 
ed with  the  sacred  pipe ;  and  a  third  with  a  tire  to  light  it.  The  pipe,  when  lighted, 
was  i)resentcd  to  the  heavens,  then  to  the  earth,  and  completing  the  circle,  was  pre- 
sented to  all  the  spirits,  invoking  them  to  witness  what  was  about  to  take  place.  The 
pipe  was  then  proffered  to  Colonel  Clark,  and  afterward  to  every  one  present."  These 
formalities  past,  the  orator  addressed  himself  to  the  Indians  as  foUows :  "  Warriors, 
yoa  ought  to  be  thankful  that  the  Great  Spirit  has  taken  pity  on  you,  has  cleared  the  sky, 
and  opened  your  ears  and  hearts  so  that  you  may  hear  the  truth.  We  have  been  de- 
ceived by  bad  birds  flying  through  the  land  (British  emissaries),  but  we  will  take 
up  the  bloody  hatchet  no  more  against  tlio  long-knife,  and  we  hope  that,  as  the  Great 
Spirit  has  brought  us  together  for  good,  as  he  is  good,  so  wo  may  bo  received  as  friends, 
and  peace  may  take  the  place  of  the  bloody  belt."  The  speaker  then  threw  down 
the  bloody  belt  of  wampum  and  flags  which  they  bad  received  from  the  British,  and 
stamped  on  them  in  token  of  their  rejection.  To  this  Colonel  Clark  guardedly  and  coldly 
replied,  that  "  he  hail  paid  attention  to  what  had  been  said,  and  would  next  day  give 
them  an  answer,  when  he  hoped  the  hearts  of  all  people  would  be  ready  to  receive  the 
truth :  but  he  recommended  them  to  keep  prepared  for  the  result  of  this  council,  apon 
which  tiif^ir  very  existence  depended." 

"  He  desired  them  not  to  permit  any  of  his  people  to  shake  hands  witli  them,  as  peace 
was  not  yet  made,  for  it  was  time  enough  to  give  the  hand  when  the  heart  could  be 
given  too." 

An  Indian  chief  replied,  "  Such  were  the  feelings  of  men  who  had  but  one  heart,  and 


■i.l 

;; '  ill 


.'.I 


424 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  hi. 


In  October  following,  the  jurisdiction  of  Virginia  was  for- 
mally e.'ctended  over  all  the  settlements  on  the  Wabash  and  the 
Upper  Mississippi,  by  the  organization  of  the  "  County  of  Illi- 
nois," nnd  the  appointment  of  Colonel  John  Todd  as  civil  com- 
mando at,  and  lieutenant-colonel  of  the  county.* 

The  services  of  Colonel  Clark  and  his  brave  companions  were 
highly  approved  by  the  Legislature  of  Virginia,  as  expressed 
in  a  resolution  of  thanks  to  them  "  for  their  extraordinary  res- 
olution and  perseverance  in  so  hazardous  an  enterprise,  and  for 
the  i/nportant  services  thereby  rendered  to  their  country ."f 

The  Indian  tribes  in  the  vicinity  of  all  the  northwestern 
British  posts  had  been  panic-stricken  at  the  daring  courage  of 
the  Virginia  troops.  The  name  of  Clark  struck  terror  into 
their  chiefs,  because  of  his  sleepless  vigilance  and  his  rapid 
movements.  Indian  hostilities  on  the  southeast  side  of  the  Ohio, 
for  a  time,  had  almost  ceased,  and  many  of  the  Indians  most 
intimate  with  the  French  population  proposed  to  take  up  arms 
against  the  English ;  but  Colonel  Clark  desired  no  such  allies 
in  a  civilized  war,  and  their  offer  was  rejected. 

Before  the  middle  of  December,  all  appearance  of  Indian 
hostility  had  vanished ;  the  people  of  Vincennes  remained 
firmly  attached  to  the  cause  of  the  United  States,  and  in  their 
allegiance  to  the  commonwealth  of  Virginia.  Captain  Helm 
was  left  with  only  two  soldiers  and  a  few  volunteer  militia 
to  protect  the  fort  at  Vincennes.  The  whole  regular  force  at 
Kaskaskia  and  Cahokia  was  reduced  to  less  than  one  hundred 
men. 

It  was  not  long  before  this  state  of  things  was  made  known 

who  did  not  speak  with  a  forked  tongue."  The  council  rose  until  next  dny,  when  Col- 
onel Clark  delivered  a  speech,  of  which  the  following  is  a  specimen : 

"  Men  and  warriors  I  pay  attention  to  my  words.  You  informed  mo  yesterday  that 
the  Great  Spirit  had  brought  us  together,  and  yon  hoped,  as  he  was  good,  it  would  be 
for  good.  I,  too,  hope  the  same,  and  expect  each  party  to  stand  to  what  is  agreed  upon, 
whether  it  be  peace  or  war,  and  hereafter  prove  ourselves  worthy  the  attention  of  the 
Great  Spirit.  I  am  a  man  and  a  warrior,  not  a  counselor ;  I  carry  war  in  my  right 
hand,  and  in  my  left  peace.  I  am  sent  by  the  great  council  of  the  long-knife  and  their 
friends  to  take  possession  of  all  the  towns  owned  by  the  English  in  this  country,  and 
to  watch  the  motions  of  the  red  people.  I  come  to  bloody  the  paths  of  those  wlio  at- 
tempt to  stop  the  course  of  the  river,  and  to  clear  the  roads  between  us  and  tlKtse  who 
desire  peace,  so  tliat  women  and  children  may  walk  in  them  without  striking  their  feet 
against  any  thing.  I  am  ordered  to  call  upon  the  Great  Fire  for  warriors  enough  to 
darken  the  land,  that  the  red  people  may  hear  nothing  but  the  sound  of  birds  that  live 
on  blood.  I  know  there  is  a  mist  before  your  eyes  ;  I  will  dispel  the  clouds,  that  yon 
may  see  clearly  tho  cause  of  the  war  between  tlie  Great  Fire  and  the  English." — See 
Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  67,  68. 

*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  ti4,  63.  t  Idem,  p.  Gl 


A.u.  1778.] 


VALI.KY    OK    TUB    MIHHIHHll'rt. 


425 


ay  that 
uuld  bo 
d  upon, 
of  the 
y  right 
id  their 
ry,  and 
nrho  at- 
sc  who 
;ir  feet 
lugh  to 
tat  live 
lat  yoa 
1"— See 

D.Gl 


to  Ciovernor  Ilniuilton,  coinmundunt  at  Detroit.  Aiiuiiied  at 
the  rajtid  HUccosseH  of  the  Virginia  troops,  and  mortified  ut  the 
disasters  of  the  British  arms,  he  determined  to  make  an  ener- 
getic invasion  of  the  IMinois  country,  and  retrieve  the  honor 
of  his  majesty's  arms  by  the  recapture  of  all  the  posts  on  the 
Wabash  and  Illinois,  and  by  leading  Colonel  Clark  and  his  fol- 
lowers captive  to  Detroit. 

Having  assembled  six  hundred  Indian  warriors,  in  addition 
to  his  force  of  eighty  regular  soldiers  and  some  Canadian  mili- 
tia, he  set  out  upon  the  expedition  to  Vincennes.  Ascending 
the  Maumee  to  the  sources  of  the  St.  Mary's  Uiver,  and  cross- 
ing over  to  the  Wal)ash,  he  made  a  rapid  descent,  and  ap- 
proached the  post  at  Vincennes  about  the  middle  of  Decem- 
ber. Captain  Helm  and  his  associates,  though  few  in  number, 
were  upon  duty,  and  witnessed  the  savage  host  which  swarm- 
ed around  the  approaching  column  of  red-coated  Britons.* 
The  British  commander,  having  determined  to  carry  the  fort 
by  assault,  and  to  exterminate  the  feeble  garrison,  advanced  to 
the  attack. 

But  Captain  Helm  was  not  to  be  alarmed  from  the  presence 
of  mind  belonging  to  a  backwoods  warrior.     With  an  air  of 
confidence,  and  as  if  supported  by  hundreds  of  defenders  in  the 
fort,  he  sprang  upon  a  bastion  containing  a  well-charged  six- 
pounder  ranged  to  the  advancing  enemy,  and  with  a  voice 
of  thunder,  as  he  brandished  his  match  in  the  air,  he  command- 
ed the  column  to  " halt"  or  he  would  blow  them  to  atoms. 
Surprised  at  such  daring,  and  fearing  a  desperate  resistance 
by  the  garrison,  which  possibly  might  far  exceed  his  expecta- 
tion, the  British  commander  ordered  a  halt  until  a  parley  was 
opened.     To  the  demand  for  the  surrender  of  the  fort.  Captain 
Helm  replied, that,  with  the  full  "honors  of  war,"  he  would 
surrender  the  post,  but  otherwise  he  would  resist  while  a  man 
lived  to  shoulder  his  rifle.     The  Briton  agreed  to  allow  him 
all  the  "  honors  of  war ;"  and  when  the  fort  was  thrown  open, 
Captain  Helm  and  five  men,  with  due  formality,  marched  out 
and  laid  down  their  arms  before  the  astonished  commander. 

The  people  of  Vincennes,  of  course,  were  obliged  again  to 
acknowledge  the  authority  of  England  and  renounce  that  of 
the  United  States  and  Virginia.  Captain  Helm  and  one  other 
American  were  retained  as  prisoners  of  war,  the  other  three 

*  Batter's  Kentucky,  p.  78,  79,  note. 


11 


i^ 


420 


irirtTORY    UF    TUB 


[nooK  III. 


being  volunteer  citizens  of  Vinrennes.  Here  ended  the  cfTi- 
cient  operations  of  Colonel  Hnmiiton  toward  the  digcoinfiture 
of  Colonel  Clark. 

The  winter  had  now  set  in  with  much  rain  and  snow,  cre- 
ating obstacles  to  a  military  invasion  almost  insurmountable. 
Colonel  Hamilton,  therefore,  determined  to  postpone  the  re- 
capture of  Kaskaskia  and  its  dependences  until  the  opening  of 
spring,  when  he  expected  a  re-enforcenient  of  two  hundred 
warriors  from  Michillimackinac,  and  five  hundred  Cherokees 
and  Chickasas  from  the  South.*  In  the  mean  time,  he  deter- 
mined to  give  employment  to  his  northern  allies,  who  now,  to 
the  number  of  four  hundred,  were  eager  to  commence  their 
operations  against  the  frontier  population  west  of  the  mount- 
ains. For  this  purpose,  they  were  sent  out  in  detached  parties 
and  small  bands,  intending  to  spread  over  the  border  settle- 
ments of  Western  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  to  harass  the 
exposed  inhabitants,  and  to  plunder  and  collect  scalps  until 
spring,  when  the  governor  would  be  ready  to  leod  them,  with 
the  other  Indian  allies,  against  the  American  posts  from  Kas- 
kaskia to  Fort  Pitt,  scouring  the  whole  frontier  as  they  passed. 

Such  were  the  arrangements  of  Colonel  Hamilton  for  prose- 
cuting the  enterprise  of  capturing  Colonel  Clark  and  his  hand- 
ful of  backwoodsmen  at  Kaskaskia,  and  subsequently  of  pros- 
trating the  American  settlements  on  the  Ohio,  by  "  sweeping 
Kentucky  and  Virginia"  on  his  route  to  Fort  Pitt. 

[A.D.  1779.]  Late  in  January  following,  Colonel  Clark  re- 
ceived intelligence  that  Colonel  Hamilton  was  at  Vincennes, 
with  only  eighty  soldiers  under  his  command,  and  was  unsup- 
ported by  his  savage  allies,  yet  contemplating  the  reduction 
of  the  post  at  Kaskaskia  in  the  spring.  To  avoid  the  disagree- 
able alternative  of  being  captured  and  led  a  prisoner  to  De- 
troit, he  determined  to  make  an  energetic  movement  with  such 
forces  as  he  could  raise,  and  anticipate  his  rival's  designs  by 
capturing  Fort  Sackville  and  sending  Colonel  Hamilton  a  pris- 
oner to  the  capital  of  Virginia. 

For  this  purpose,  with  great  expedition,  he  prepared  to  make 

*  Arrangements  had  been  made  for  a  general  council  with  the  Chorokeoa  and  Chick- 
Bifts  at  the  mouth  of  the  fenneasce,  and  the  Indians  were  to  bring  with  them  down 
the  Tennesseo  large  supplies  of  corn  for  the  grand  expedition  which  was  to  rendei- 
vous  at  this  point.  This  grand  council,  of  course,  was  broken  up  by  the  luicxpected 
movements  of  Colonel  Clark,  and  thus  the  operations  of  the  Northern  and  Suuthcm  In- 
diana were  at  once  thwarted. 


A.D.  1770.] 


VALLEY   or   THE    MIMMIrtSIPPI. 


•127 


a  Hiuldoii  and  iinexpet^ted  inui'cH  ,i  Vmcennes  with  his  wiiolo 
diMpoNiible  force.  This  force,  iu,  i«;uMBd  hy  two  companies  rais> 
ed  in  Kaskaskia  and  ('ahokia,  and  Huch  recruits  as  he  could 
muster  within  ten  days,  iinnuutcil  to  only  one  hundred  and 
seventy  men.  Pre|mra(>'m.s  for  the  ex|>editi«>n  were  made 
without  delay;  two  coitijfiinies  were  innnediately  raised  and 
organized  to  re-enforce  liis  command ;  one  from  Kaskaskia, 
connnanded  by  Captain  Charleville,  and  one  from  Cahokia, 
commanded  by  Captain  M'Carty.  llis  fon^e  was  thus  increas- 
ed to  one  hundred  and  seventy  men.  A  large  keel-boat  was 
fitted  up  as  a  galley,  and  mounted  with  two  four-pounder  can- 
non and  fotir  swivels,  and  furnished  with  a  suitable  supply  of 
provisions,  \«iiunition,  and  military  stores.  This  vessel  was 
placed  under  the  conunand  o(  Captain  John  Rodgers,  with  a 
company  of  forty-six  men,  with  orders  to  penetrate  up  the 
Wabash  within  a  few  miles  of  the  mouth  of  White  River,  and 
there  to  take  up  his  position  and  wait  for  further  orders,  per- 
mitting none  to  pass  up  or  down  the  river. 

On  the  7th  of  February, ('olonel  Clark,  with  the  remainder 
of  his  force,  amounting  to  one  hundred  and  thirty  men,  set  out 
upon  a  perilous  march  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  through 
the  wilderness  northeast  to  Vincennes.  The  route  was  an  In- 
dian trace,  which  lay  through  deep  forests  and  prairies ;  the 
weather  was  uncommonly  wet ;  the  water-courses  were  out 
of  their  bunks  ;  and  the  larger  streams  had  inundated  their  bot- 
toms from  bluff  to  bluff,  often  three  or  four  miles  in  width ;  but 
the  hardy  backwoodsmen,  under  their  intrepid  and  persevering 
leader,  pressed  forward  in  spite  of  every  obstacle.  On  foot, 
with  their  rifles  on  their  shoulders,  and  their  knapsacks  filled 
with  parched  corn  and  jerked  beef,  for  six  days  they  advan- 
ced along  the  trace,  through  forests,  marshes,  ponds,  swollen 
streams,  and  inundated  lowlands,  for  nearly  one  hundred  miles, 
when  they  arrived  at  the  crossings  of  the  Little  Wabash,  where 
the  bottoms,  to  the  width  of  three  miles,  were  inundated  to  the 
depth  of  "three  feet,  never  under  two,  and  frequently  over 
four."  Through  these  lowlands  the  whole  battalion  were  com- 
pelled to  march,  often  feeling  for  the  trace  with  their  feet,  and 
carrying  their  arms  and  ammunition  over  their  heads  to  pro- 
tect them  from  the  water. 

Five  days  more  brought  them  to  the  Wabash,  just  below  the 
mouth  of  the  Embarrass  River,  and  nine  miles  below  the  post 


428 


HISTORY   OF   TUB 


[hook   III. 


of  Vincennes.  Here  great  difficulty  was  encountered  in  cross- 
ing the  river.  No  boats  were  within  reach,  and  the  galley  had 
not  arrived.  Neii  rly  two  days  were  spent  in  unavailing  elKtrts 
to  cross  the  river ;  the  men  became  discouraged,  and  starva- 
tion seemed  to  await  them  in  their  present  situation.  At  length, 
on  the  evening  of  the  20th,  a  boat  was  captured,  and  prepara- 
tions for  crossing  the  low  grounds  and  the  river  commenced. 
After  great  difficulty  in  crossing  the  river,  they  traversed  low 
grounds  by  wading  often  up  to  their  armpits,  and  reached  the 
opposite  highlands  nearly  exhausted  by  fatigue,  fasting,  and 
cold.*  Here  they  remained  to  recruit  their  exhausted  bodies, 
and  to  prepare  for  their  appearance  before  Fort  Sackville. 
Such  had  been  their  hardships  by  day  and  at  night,  by  hunger 
and  exposure  in  the  water,  that  the  comparative  mildness  of 
the  season  alone  prevented  this  gallant  little  band  from  perish- 
ing almost  in  sight  of  the  object  of  their  toils.f 

On  the  evening  of  the  23d,  Colonel  Clark  dispatched  a  mes- 
sage to  the  peojile  of  Vincennes,  informing  them  that  he  should 
take  possession  of  the  town  that  night,  and  that  no  violen(;e 
would  be  used  against  those  w!io  abstained  from  aiding  the  en- 
emy, and  urging  all  the  friends  of  the  King  of  England  to  re- 
pair to  the  fort,  and  to  fight  like  men. 

At  twilight  the  troops  were  paraded  with  flags  and  martial 
music  around  the  summit  of  a  contiguous  eminence,  in  order  to 
display  their  lines,  and  to  augment  their  numbers  in  the  eyes 
of  the  people,  while  a  detachment  of  fourteen  men  were  sent  to 
begin  the  attack  upon  the  fort  with  the  rifle.  When  the  attack 
was  flrst  made,  the  British  commander  was  not  aware  that  any 
enemy  was  at  hand,  until  the  sharp  crack  of  the  rifle  announ- 
ced their  presence,  and  warned  him  to  his  post. 

When  the  attack  commenced.  Colonel  Hamilton  and  his  pris- 
oner. Captain  Helm,  were  anmsing  themselves  over  a  social 
game  of  cards  and  apple-toddy.  At  the  crack  of  the  rifle,  Cap- 
tain Helm,  as  if  inspired  by  the  sound,  sprung  to  his  feet,  and, 
with  the  usual  expletive,  exclaimed,  "  It  is  Clark,  and  we  shall 
all  be  his  prisoners  !"  The  town  of  Vincennes,  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Wabash,  immediately  surrendered,  and  many  of  the  in- 
habitants gladly  assisted  in  the  investment  of  the  fort. 

A  constant  fne  by  moonlight  from  the  marksmen,  securely 

*  Butler'a  Kentucky,  p.  81-83. 

t  Sue  JeffcrsouB  Corrospoudenco,  Randolph's  cd.,  vol.  i.,  p.  451,  459. 


A.D.  1779.] 


VALLEY    OF   TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


429 


posted  out  of  reach  of  the  guns  of  the  fort,  took  down  every 
man  who  dared  to  ex[)ose  his  person  above  the  walls.  About 
midnight,  when  the  moon  had  dechned  behind  the  western  bills, 
and  darkness  had  spread  its  mantle  over  the  besiegers,  (Jolonel 
Clark  ordered  a  deep  ditch  opened  within  rifle  shot  of  the  fort, 
to  shield  his  men  from  the  fire  of  the  enemy  during  the  follow- 
ing day.  Before  the  next  dawn  of  day,  the  riflemen  were  se- 
curely sheltered  in  the  ditch,  from  which  they  poured  a  con- 
tinued volley  of  well-directed  balls  into  the  port-holes,  and  with- 
out the  loss  of  a  man  silenced  two  pieces  of  cannon  in  fifteen 
minutes.*  Every  gunner  who  presented  himself  to  direct  the 
cannon  was  immediately  killed  by  the  unseen  riflemen  firing 
through  the  port-holes,  until,  terror-stricken  at  the  unei-ring  aim, 
they  abandoned  the  batteries. 

Eighteen  hours  had  the  garrison  been  exposed  to  this  de- 
structive fire,  when  Colonel  Clark  sent  a  menacing  summons  to 
the  commander,  demanding  the  surrender  of  the  fort.f  After 
a  protracted  conference  relative  to  the  terms  of  capitulation. 
Colonel  Hamilton  signed  the  article  late  in  the  evening  of  the 
24th  of  February,  and  on  the  following  day.  Colonel  Clark,  at 
the  head  of  two  companies,  entered  the  fort  victoriously,  while 
Captains  Bowman  and  M'Carty,  with  their  companies,  received 
the  prisoners. 

In  the  first  assault,  one  of  Colonel  Clark's  men  was  wounded 
by  a  shot  from  the  port-holes,  who  was  the  only  man  injured 
on  the  part  of  the  assailants.  During  the  siege  on  the  second 
day,  a  war-party  of  Western  Indians,  ignorant  of  the  presence 
of  Colonel  Clark,  arrived  from  an  excursion  against  the  Ken- 
tucky settlements,  bringing  with  them  two  white  prisoners,  and 
encamped  in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort.  Colonel  Clark  soon  re- 
solved to  give  them  battle,  and  detached  a  party,  who  encount- 
ered the  savages,  and  in  a  short  time  completely  routed  them, 

*  Sec  Colonel  Clark's  Report,  .TcfTcrnon's  CorresiMniilcnrn,  vol.  i.,  p.  nni. 

t  Tho  Ibllowiiig  is  a  copy  of  the  Huminoiis  sent  by  Colonel  Clark  to  Win  British  an- 
tagonist, viz. : 

"  tSiii,— In  order  to  save  yourself  fram  the  irapondinc;  stonn  wliirh  now  tlirenten,s  you, 
I  order  you  immediately  to  surrender  yourself,  with  all  your  urarrison,  stores,  &c.,  for,  if 
I  am  obliged  to  storm,  you  may  depend  on  such  treatment  as  is  justly  due  to  a  murder- 
er Bewaro  of  destroying  stores  of  any  kind,  or  any  papers  or  letters  thiit  an;  in  your 
possession,  or  injuring  any  house  in  town,  for,  by  Heaven !  if  you  do,  there  shall  be  no 
mercy  shown  you. 

"  G.  11.  Clark." 
— See  Nortli  American  Review,  No.  105,  October,  1839,  p.  CGI. 


1: 


430 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[dook  III. 


with  the  loss  of  nine  warriors,  besides  the  recapture  of  the  two 
white  prisoners.  The  remainder  of  the  Indians,  surprised  at 
the  courage  and  impetuosity  of  the  American  troops,  fled  with 
precipitation. 

The  humbled  pride  of  the  haughty  commander  of  Detroit, 
upon  his  unexpected  reverses,  was  but  half  concealed  when,  in 
signing  the  articles  of  capitulation,  with  affected  complacency 
he  declared,  that  in  the  surrender  he  was  greatly  influenced  by 
the  "  known  generosity  of  his  enemy."* 

The  articles  stipulated  for  the  surrender  of  Fort  Sackville, 
with  its  military  stores  and  ordnance,  together  with  its  entire 
dependences,  including  the  whole  force  under  his  command, 
as  prisoners  of  war. 

After  a  few  days,  intelligence  was  received  that  an  escort  of 
forty  men,  convoying  a  large  amount  of  merchandise,  including 
goods  for  the  Indians  and  supplies  for  the  army,  was  advancing 
by  way  of  the  Wabash  from  Detroit.  With  the  utmost  dis- 
patch Colonel  Clark  took  measures  to  intercept  and  capture  the 
rich  cargo  and  the  escort,  before  the  commander  should  receive 
intelligence  of  the  fall  of  the  post  at  Vincennes.  With  the  se- 
crecy and  dispatch  so  characteristic  of  all  Colonel  Clark's  mil- 
itary operations,  Captain  Helm,  the  late  British  prisoner,  at 
the  head  of  sixty  men,  was  on  his  way  to  intercept  the  unsus- 
pecting detachment.  The  ever-successful  captain,  after  a  few 
days'  absence,  returned  in  charge  of  the  entire  escort,  pris- 
oners of  war,  and  the  cargo,  amounting  to  ten  thousand  pounds 
in  value,  all  of  which  had  been  captured  without  the  loss  of  a 
man  in  the  enterprise. 

The  private  soldiers  surrendered  by  Colonel  Hamilton  were 
dismissed  on  parole,  many  of  them  being  Canadian  French. 
But  Colonel  Hamilton  himself,  Major  Hay,  and  a  few  other  of- 
flcers  of  lower  grade,  as  company  for  Governor  Rocheblave, 
were  sent  in  charge  of  Captain  Williams,  under  guard,  to  the 
capital  of  Virginia,  prisoners  of  war,  there  to  meet  the  ju.t 
indignation  of  an  outraged  people  from  the  hands  of  the  civil 
authorities. 

Having  organized  a  provisional  government  at  Vincennes 
and  its  dependences.  Colonel  Clark  returned  to  Kaskaskia. 

While  at  Vincennes,  Colonel  Clark  had  {)lanned  a  campaign 
for  the  capture  of  Detroit,  which  was  finally  abandoned  on  ac- 

•  Sec  Jeffenion's  Correspondence,  vo'..  i.,  p.  164,  &c. 


A.D.  1779.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


431 


count  of  the  remote  situation  of  the  post  and  the  difficulty  of 
procuring  supplies  at  that  distant  point,  and  for  want  of  suffi- 
cient re-enfurcernents  from  the  settlements  on  the  Ohio.  At 
that  time,  having  entered  into  treaty  stipulations  with  most  of 
the  northwestern  tribes,  he  had  for  the  expedition  the  proffer- 
ed service  of  several  thousand  warriors  who  were  anxious  to 
turn  their  arms  against  the  British  power  in  Canada,  and  to 
fight  under  the  standard  of  the  great  American  chief.  But 
Colonel  Clark  was  unwilling  to  conduct  a  savage  invasion 
against  the  frontiers  of  Canada,  and  the  enterprise  was  finally 
abandoned.  An  expedition  for  the  reduction  of  Detroit,  the 
great  store-house  of  Indian  warfare,  had  also  been  contempla- 
ted by  General  M'lutosh  the  same  year  from  Fort  Pitt.  The 
object,  however,  was  virtually  accomplished  by  the  captivity 
of  the  commandant  and  his  i^  rmy  at  Vincennes. 

The  executive  council  of  Virginia,  pleased  with  the  opportu- 
nity of  avenging  the  numerous  wrongs,  cruelties,  and  murders 
inflicted  upon  the  frontier  people,  by  retaliating  condign  pun- 
ishment upon  the  authors  and  prime  instigators  of  all  those 
barbarities,  consigned  Governor  Hamilton  and  his  associates 
to  close  imprisonment  in  irons. 

This  sentence  of  the  Executive  Council  was  passed  upon 
them  for  the  following  reasons,*  viz. : 

"1st.  In  retaliation  for  cruel  treatment  of  our  captive  citi- 
zens by  the  enemy  generally. 

"2d.  For  the  barbarous  species  of  warfare  which  he  himself 
and  his  savage  allies  carried  on  in  our  western  frontier. 

"  3d.  For  particular  acts  of  barbarity  of  which  he  himself 
was  personally  guilty  toward  some  of  our  citizens  when  in  his 
power."t 

'  Seo  Joflersoii's  CoircRpontlenco,  vol.  i.,  p.  162,  168,  18'>,  and  453. 

t  Diii'iui,'  the  wliole  t-oui'so  of  the  llevolutioiinry  war,  the  Britisli  offipiT!.  and  agents 
poriuitti'd  and  instigated  the  Indinn.s  to  indulge  in  every  Kpecies  of  rnvOtv  and  liarbar- 
ity  agiiinst  the  Aniericnn  people  within  their  reneh.  The  following  exii-art  from  the 
Journals  of  the  Executive  Couneil  of  Virginia  will  tiiruw  some  light  upon  the  eondnet 
of  these  agents  of  a  Christian  power.  Aniongthese,  captured  hy  Cdliruel  Clark  at  Vin- 
cennes. were  Governor  Hnniilton.  of  Detroit,  Major  Hay,  Philip  Ucjoan,  justice  of  the 
|ieace  for  J)etn>it.  and  Williinn  Lainothe,  captain  of  vulanteers.  The  ])nM'fe<lini.'s  of 
the  Kxecutive  Council  on  the  18th  of  June,  1779,  "  relative  Ut  the  case  of  Henry  Ham- 
ilton, K»t\.,  who  has  acted  for  some  years  i)ast  as  lieutenant-governor  of  the  settlements 
at  and  about  Detroit,  and  eoininandant  of  the  Hritish  garrison  there,"  \c. 

"  The  council  find  that  Q\  ■  r:.or  Hamilton  has  executed  liiH  task  of  exciting  the  In- 
dians to  perpetrate  their  accustomed  cruelties  on  the  citizens  of  the  United  States, 
w'lhnut  ilMiHction  of  aire,  tex,  or  condilion,  with  an  eagerness  and  avidity  which  evince 
that  the  general  nature  of  his  charge  harmonized  with  his  peculiar  disposition,"  &.C. 


-Ml 

m 


■a 


I  '4 

;i'!  ml 


432 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  III. 


Although  numerous  attempts  to  harass  the  frontier  settle- 
ments of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia  by  savage  incursions  were 
made  at  Detroit  subsequently,  no  attempt  was  ever  made  to 
recover  the  posts  on  the  Wabash  and  Upper  Mississippi.     The 

The  journal  ccntiniK-::  to  declare  that  "  the  uuiform  tenor  of  hia  cruelty  is  established 
by  numerous  documents  and  ample  testimony.  At  the  time  of  hia  capture,  it  appears 
he  had  aent  cunaidcrable  bodiua  of  Indiana  againat  the  border  population  of  these 
■tates,  and  had  actually  ap[>ointcd  a  great  council  to  meet  him  at  (the  mouth  of)  Ten- 
nessee, to  concert  the  operations  of  this  present  campaign.  They  find  that  his  treat- 
ment of  our  citizens  and  soldiers,  taken  and  carried  within  the  Umits  of  hia  command. 
hcu  been  cruel  and  inhuman ;  that  in  the  caae  of  John  Dodge,  a  citizen  of  these  states, 
which  has  been  porticularly  stated  to  this  board,  he  loaded  him  with  iron»,  threw  him 
into  a  dungeon,  vilhout  bedding,  without  straw,  without  Jire,  in  the  dead  of  winter  and  in 
the  severe  climate  of  Detroit;  that  in  that  state  he  wasted  with  incessant  expectations 
of  death  ;  that  when  the  rigors  of  his  situation  had  brought  him  so  low  that  death  seemed 
likely  to  withdraw  him  from  their  ]>owcr,  he  was  taken  out  and  somewhat  attended 
to,  until  a  little  mended,  and  before  he  had  recovered  ability  to  walk,  was  again  re- 
turned to  his  dungeon,  in  which  a  hole  only  seven  inches  square  was  cut  for  the  admis- 
sion of  air,  and  the  same  load  of  irons  put  upon  him ;  that  appearing  a  second  time  in 
imminent  danger  of  being  lost  to  them,  he  was  again  taken  from  his  dungeon,  iu  which 
he  had  lain  from  January  until  June,  with  the  intermission  of  a  few  weeks  only,  before 
mentioned.  That  Grovemor  Hamilton  gave  standing  rewards  for  scalps,  but  offered  none 
for  prisoners  ;  which  induced  the  Indians,  after  making  their  captives  carry  their  bag- 
gage into  the  neighborhood  of  the  fort,  there  to  put  them  to  death  and  carry  their  scalps 
to  the  governor,  who  welcomed  tlieir  return  and  success  by  a  discharge  of  camion ;  that 
when  a  prisoner,  who  had  been  destined  to  death  by  the  Indians,  was  dextrously  with- 
drawn by  a  fellow-prisoner,  from  pure  humanity,  after  the  Hrc  was  kindled,  and  himseir 
tied  to  the  stake,  a  large  reward  was  offered  for  the  discovery  of  the  victim;  and  when 
his  place  of  concealment  was  known,  Dcjean,  being  sent  with  a  party  of  soldiers,  sur- 
rounded the  house  and  took  the  unhappy  victim  and  bis  deliverer,  and  threw  them  into 
jail,  where  the  fonner  soon  expire-',  under  perpetual  assurances  from  Dejean  that  he 
was  to  bo  again  ros  >red  to  the  Indians  for  execution ;  and  the  latter,  when  discharged, 
was  bitterly  reprimanded  by  Governor  Hamilton.  It  appears  that  Dejean  was  upon 
all  occasions  the  willing  and  cordial  instrument  of  Governor  Hamilton,  acting  both  af 
Judge  and  keeper  of  the  jail ;  instigating  and  urging  him,  by  malicious  insinuations  and 
untvuths,  to  increase  rather  than  relax  his  severities ;  and  height(!ning  the  cruelty  of 
hii«  orders  by  his  manner  of  executing  thorn ;  offering  at  one  time  a  reward  to  one  man 
to  bo  hangman  for  another,  throatcuing  Lis  life  on  refusal,  and  taking  from  hia  prisoncra 
the  little  property  rheir  opportunitiea  enabled  them  to  acquire. 

"  It  appears  that  Lamothe  was  captain  of  the  volunteer  scalping-partics  of  Indians 
and  whites  who  went  from  time  to  time,  under  general  orders  to  spare  neither  iiicti 
women,  nor  children."    These  are  only  a  few  circumstances  from  many  others. 

"  They  have  seen  that  the  conduct  of  the  British  officers,  both  civil  and  military,  lins. 
in  tlie  whole  course  of  this  war,  been  savage  and  unprecedented  among  civilized  na 
tions  ;  that  our  officers  taken  by  them  have  been  confined  in  crowded  juils.  loathsome 
dungeons  and  prison-ships,  loaded  with  irons,  supplied  often  with  no  food,  generallj- 
with  too  little  for  the  sustenance  of  nature,  and  that  little  sometimes  unsound  ind  un- 
wholesome, whereby  numbers  have  periuliod,"  &«.'.  Therefore,  "  this  board  has  resolv- 
eii  to  advise  the  governor  that  the  said  Henry  Hamilton,  Philip  Dcjfan,  am!  William 
Lamothe,  prisoners  of  war,  be  put  iu  irons,  confined  in  the  dungeon  of  the  public  juil, 
debarred  the  use  of  pen,  ink,  and  paper,  and  excluded  fi-oni  all  converse,  except  with 
tlieir  keepers  ;  and  the-  governor  orders  accordingly;  they  being  some  of  those  very  in- 
dividuals who,  having  distinguished  themselves  personally  iu  this  line  of  cruel  condiicl, 
are  fit  subjects  to  begin  with  in  the  work  of  retaliation." — See  Jefferson's  Correspond- 
ence, vol.  i.,  p.  456-458. 


A.D.  1779.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


43b 


priaonera 


I 


civil  and  military  jurisdiction  of  Virginia  was  extended  over 
the  whole  country,  until  after  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary 
war,  as  the  "  County  of  Illinois."  This  county  had  been  or- 
ganized early  in  the  spring  of  1779. 

By  the  treaty  of  peace,  Great  Britain  renounced  all  claim  to 
the  whole  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi. 

Thus  terminated  forever  the  dominion  of  Great  Britain  in 
the  Illinois  and  Wabash  countries,  with  the  loss  of  three  mili> 
tary  posts,  which  commanded  the  whole  northwestern  territory 
of  the  United  States. 

To  the  Americans  the  conquest  was  doubly  important,  be- 
cause the  victories  on  the  Upper  Mississippi  were  won  without 
bloodshed  or  military  devastation ;  and  while  the  conquest  se- 
cured the  hearts  of  the  people  as  well  as  the  country,  it  was 
only  a  sure  presage  of  similar  reverses  to  the  British  arms 
upon  the  Lower  Mississippi. 

The  Loss  of  West  Florida. — From  the  commencement  of  the 
Revolutionary  war  until  the  spring  of  1778,  the  people  of  West 
Florida  had  remained  free  from  any  prirticipation  in  the  war 
which  had  been  raging  along  the  Atlantic  seaboard  and  upon 
the  western  frontier,  or  Ohio  region.  During  the  summer  of 
1777,  the  Federal  government,  having  secured  the  friendship 
and  favorable  consideration  of  the  Spanish  authorities  of  Lou- 
isiana, had  made  arrangements,  through  Oliver  Pollock,  the 
American  agent  in  New  Orleans,  for  supplies  of  ammunition, 
military  stores,  and  munitions  of  war  for  the  western  posts. 
Supplies  of  this  kind,  including  several  small  field-pieces  of  ar- 
tillery, transported  up  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio  Riversi  in  keel- 
boats  and  barges,  under  the  command  of  American  officers, 
had  been  received  at  Fort  Pitt  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year. 
The  Spanish  possessions  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  and  the 
constant  iniercourse  between  New  Orleans  and  Upper  Louisi- 
ana, by  means  of  the  river  commerce,  greatly  facilitated  the 
American  officers  in  the  arduous  enterprise  of  transporting 
military  stores  upon  a  river  which  was  partly  claimed  by  the 
English,  and  which  was  occupied  by  numerous  F-t^glish  settle- 
ments, with  several  military  posts,  for  more  tlian  two  hundred 
miles  below  the  mouth  (A'  the  Yazoo.  The  Spaniards  had  an 
undoubted  right  to  the  river  navigation ;  but  not  so  with  the 
Americans.  The  lattei  encoimtered  great  hazard,  and  often 
imminent  danger,  in  navigating  ihe  river,  or  in  attempting  to 

Vol.  I. — E  r. 


484 


illSTOKY    OF   TUB 


[book  III. 


(I 


evade  the  vigilance  of  the  English  commandants,  being  some- 
times compelled  to  procure  their  supplies  through  Spanish 
bargemen  beyond  the  nurveillance  of  the  British  posts  on  the 
Lower  Mississippi. 

Nevertheless,  through  the  enterprise  and  discretion  of  Cap- 
tain William  Lynn,  Colonel  Rodgers,  Captain  James  Willing, 
and  (^aptain  Benham,  the  American  posts  on  the  Ohio  and 
Upper  Mississippi  were  repeatedly  supplied  during  the  years 
1777,  1778,  and  1770  with  military  stores  and  supplies  from 
New  Orleans. 

It  was  in  one  of  these  expeditions,  in  the  winter  and  spring 
of  1778,  that  (/aptain  Willing  descended  the  Mississippi  with 
a  detachment  of  fifty  men,  in  two  keel-boats,  for  supplies  from 
New  Orleans  for  the  western  posts.  The  King  of  Spain  was 
on  terms  of  peace  with  the  United  States,  and  maintained  a 
neutral  attitude  as  to  Great  Britain.  Captain  Willing,  although 
in  the  service  of  the  United  States,  which  were  engaged  in  a 
deadly  war  with  Great  Britain,  was  willing  to  consider  the 
English  settlements  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  below  the  Ya- 
zoo, as  neutrals  in  the  war,  taking  no  active  agency  either  for 
or  against  the  United  States ;  yet  as  he  was  necessarily,  in  self- 
defense,  compelled  to  observe  the  greatest  circumspection  and 
precaution,  to  avoid  the  vigilance  of  the  English  agent  in  New 
Orleans,  who  was  closely  observing  any  violation  of  neutrality 
in  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  who  had  remonstrated  with  the 
Governor  of  Louisiana  relative  to  former  supplies  obtained  by 
agents  of  the  United  States,  Captain  Willing  deemed  it  pru- 
dent that  he  should  have  some  assurance,  as  he  descended  to 
New  Orleans,  that  the  people  of  the  Natchez  district  would 
observe  a  strict  neutrality  on  their  part.  In  order  to  place 
this  question  beyond  doubt,  ho  landed  at  Natchez,  where  he 
had  formerly  resided  for  several  years  before  the  war,  and 
having  obtained  an  interview  with  some  of  the  citizens,  he 
took  the  sense  of  the  town  in  a  public  meeting,  and  with  the 
general  approbation  entered  into  a  written  convention  of  neu- 
trality. 

The  convention  having  betA  concluded  and  signed.  Captain 
Willing  prepared  to  descend  on  his  perilous  enterprise  ;  but  it 
was  not  long  before  he  was  informed  that  several  individuals, 
repugnant  to  the  convention,  would  not  be  governed  by  its  pro- 
visions.    Having  satisfied  himself  that  the  opposition  of  these 


A.D.  1770.] 


VAIiLRT    OF   TUB    MISBIflSim. 


435 


men  ^voul(l  be  highly  prejudicial  to  his  operations,  he  detei- 
mined  to  place  them  in  military  custody,  and  thereby  secure 
their  neutrality  by  preventing  interference  with  his  operations. 
To  accomplish  this  object,  he  dispatched,  at  night,  a  corporal's 
guard,  under  the  direction  of  a  faithful  guide,  to  the  dwellings 
of  the  most  obnoxious  of  the  Loyalists,  who  were  conveyed,  to- 
gether with  some  of  their  slaves  and  other  personal  property, 
to  his  headquarters  on  board  his  vessel,   where  they  were  de- 
tained under  guard  until  a  satisfactory  assurance  was  given 
that  they  would  not  violate  the  convention  of  neutrality.     This 
assurance  having  been  given,  they  were  set  at  liberty,  and 
their  property  restored.     To  this  there  was  only  one  excep- 
tion.    One  individual,  a  pensioner  of  the  king,  from  his  known 
energy  of  character,  his  strong  attachment  to  the  royal  cause, 
and  his  zealous  efforts  to  promote  the  interests  of  his  majesty's 
government.  Captain  Willing  retained  in  custody,  and  convey- 
ed him  to  the  city  of  New  Orleans.     After  a  few  days,  the 
captain  was  induced  to  give  him  the  liberty  of  the  city  upon 
his  parole  until  his  return  to  Natchez.     Disregarding  his  pa- 
role, which  he  may  have  deemed  only  a  release  from  an  un- 
lawful restraint,  he  returned  to  the  vicinity  of  Natchez,  resolv- 
ed to  seek  revenge  by  taking  redress  in  his  own  hands. 

These  tronsactions  led  to  the  first  overt  act  of  hostility  on 
the  part  of  West  Florida  against  the  troops  of  the  United 
States,  and  placed  the  people  of  the  district  in  the  attitude  of 
parties  in  the  war.  It  was  but  a  short  time  before  Spain  be- 
came involved  with  England  in  the  war;  and  Florida  then  stood 
to  Spain  in  the  relation  of  an  enemy's  country,  and  became  a 
legitimate  object  for  conquest. 

It  was  not  many  weeks  afterward,  when  the  first  act  of  open 
hostility  by  the  people  of  the  Natchez  district  against  the  Amer- 
ican troops  occurred  at  Ellis's  Clifis,  a  short  distance  below 
the  mouth  of  the  St.  Catharine  Creek.  This  was  a  wanton  at- 
tack, made  by  about  twenty-five  men  in  ambuscade,  upon  the 
troops  and  crew  of  one  of  Captain  Willing's  boats  on  their  re- 
turn from  New  Orleans.*     The  boat,  advancing  against  the 

*  Whether  Captaiu  Willing  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  English  while  on  tlie  Low- 
er Mii8i8si]ipi  ur  not,  I  have  not  been  able  to  ascertain,  but  ara  inclined  to  liuliovo  he 
must  have  been  captured  before  he  left  West  Florida,  in  1778.  One  thing  is  certain: 
in  the  spring  of  1779  he  was  a  prisoner  of  war,  and  was  kept  in  rigorous  (umlinenienti 
and  a  portion  of  the  time  in  irons,  in  the  British  army.  He  was  exchanged  near  tho 
dose  of  the  year  1779,  at  the  same  time  that  Colonel  Hamilton,  of  Detroit.  M.  ttoche- 
blave,  of  Ktiakiiskia,  and  others  were  exchanged.    His  rigorous  treatment  by  the  one- 


430 


HISTORY   OF  THR 


[book  III, 


Strong  current,  wns  decoyed  to  the  shore  where  the  nmbus- 
cade  wns  Inid,  when  a  sudden  volley  from  the  concealed  party 
killed  five  men  and  wounded  several  others.*  The  boat  im- 
mediately made  land,  and  the  crew  surrendered.  This  boat 
was  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Reuben  Harrison,  who  had 
been  instructed  to  take  his  position  for  a  short  time  at  Natch- 
ez, in  order  to  secure  a  strict  observance  of  neutrality.  Hos- 
tilities were  suppressed  by  the  judicious  interference  of  others. 
It  would  hardly  be  deemed  strange,  under  these  cii'cumstan- 
ces,  if  Captain  Willing  subsequently,  on  his  return  to  Natchez, 
did  land  and  pay  his  respects  to  his  former  adversary,  by  lev- 
ying a  heavy  contribution  upon  his  vindictive  enemy  for  the 
use  and  benefit  of  the  American  service. 

The  wanton  attack  upon  Captain  Willing's  boat  and  men 
was  an  outrage  upon  the  officers  of  the  United  States,  which 
accelerated  the  determination  of  the  Spanish  authorities  of 
Louisiana  to  make  active  preparations  for  the  entire  subjuga- 
tion of  that  portion  of  Louisiana  which  had  been  annexed  to 
West  Florida.  The  influence  of  Captain  Willing  was  exerted 
with  great  industry,  and  was  seconded  by  many  influential 
Americans  then  resident  in  the  country,  to  induce  the  Spanish 
governor,  upon  the  first  intelligence  of  a  rupture  between  the 
English  and  Spanish  courts,  to  make  a  vigorous  campaign  at 
the  onset,  and  reduce  the  British  posts  before  they  could  re- 

my  was  retaliated  on  Colonel  Hamilton  and  otliera. — See  Jeffenon's  Correspondence, 
vol.  i.,  letter  xii.,  p.  169. 

*  The  party  in  concealment  had  been  awaiting  the  expected  arrival  of  this  boat, 
which  was  known  to  bo  a  few  miles  below.  An  ambuscade  wns  formed,  and  two 
persons  were  unconcealed,  to  entice  the  boat  near  the  shore.  The  boat  was  seen  for 
several  miles  below,  as  she  slowly  toiled  up  the  strong  current.  In  an  affidavit  made 
by  James  Truly  before  William  Ferguson,  Esq.,  on  the  6th  of  November,  1797,  in 
Fairchild's  precinct,  he  declares,  "he  has  resided  in  the  Natchez  district  since  1773, 
and  is  well  acquainted  in  that  vicinity ;  and  that  the  party  was  commanded  by  Colonel 
Hutchcns.  That  the  party  was  concealed  in  the  bushes  and  cone,  while  Captains 
Hooper  and  Bingaman  remained  upon  the  Hhore  to  hail  the  boat ;  that  when  the  sig- 
nal for  enticing  the  boat  over  was  mode,  some  one  urged  that  they  should  fire  upon 
them  as  soon  as  they  came  in  roach,  without  speaking ;  but  that  tlie  jteople  objected, 
and  said  it  would  be  time  to  fire  when  they  found  there  was  a  necessity ;  when  they 
appointed  Captains  Hooper  and  Bingaman  to  remain  unconcealed  by  the  water-side 
(the  rest  being  concealed),  to  know  their  intentions ;  but  when  Lieutenant  Harrison 
came  near  enough  to  speak,  and  discovered  that  he  had  been  basely  decoyed  over,  ho 
spoke  aloud,  and  said  he  desired  all  those  who  were  friends  of  the  United  Stales  to 
separate  from  those  who  were  not ;  in  answer  to  which,  Captain  Hooper  ordered  all 
those  on  l)oard  who  were  friendli/  to  the  Natchez  (English)  to  fall  below  the  gunwale 
or  jump  ashore.  In  the  confusion  which  ensued,  a  volley  was  fired  from  all  sides,  and 
five  Americans  were  killed  '  e  rest  jumped  ashore  and  called  for  quarter." — See 
Elltcott's  .Toumal,  p.  131, 13 


A.D.  1770.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MldaiBHIPPL 


487 


ceive  aid,  and  while  the  Republicans  in  the  province  were  high- 
ly  exasperated  at  the  treacherous  breach  of  neutrality  in  the 
Natchez  district.  Many  persons  in  West  Florida  were  emi- 
grants from  North  Carolina,  Virginia,  and  the  Middle  States, 
and  others  were  from  the  New  England  States,  who  took  a 
lively  interest  in  the  struggle  of  their  friends  near  the  Atlantic 
seaboard.  Such  were  anxious  to  see  the  British  power  exclud- 
ed from  the  Mississippi  in  the  south,  as  it  had  been  already  on 
the  north,  by  the  individual  State  of  Virginia  alone.  Hence 
the  military  operations  of  Governor  Galvez,  for  the  reduction 
of  the  British  posts  of  West  Florida  in  1779,  were  accompa- 
nied by  a  large  number  of  patriotic  Americans  from  the  districts 
of  Natchez  and  Baton  Rouge,  as  well  as  from  the  Illinois  coun- 
try, who  contributed  the  whole  weight  of  their  influence  and 
personal  services  in  the  enterprise.* 

While  England  had  been  waging  war  vigorously  against  the 
colonies,  France  and  Spain  were  not  indiflerent  spectators  of 
the  contest.  Circumstances  connected  with  the  o|)erations  of 
the  British  arms  against  the  colonies  gave  rise  to  a  hostile  col- 
lision between  the  French  and  English  governments ;  and 
Spain,  by  an  attempt  of  friendly  intercession  between  England 
and  France,  gave  oflense  to  the  English  cabinet,  and  soon  after- 
ward became  involved  in  the  war  as  an  ally  of  France.  Hav- 
ing declared  war  against  Great  Britain,  his  Catholic  majesty 
resolved  upon  the  re-annexation  of  Florida  to  the  province  of 
Louisiana.  Don  Bernard  de  Galvez,  colonel  in  the  armies  of 
Spain  and  governor  of  Louisiana,  a  man  of  genius  and  daring 
ambition  for  military  distinction,  having  received  the  earliest 
intimation  of  the  declaration  of  war,  concerted  measures  for 
the  immediate  subjugation  of  all  that  portion  of  West  Florida 
contiguous  to  the  Mississippi.! 

Such  was  the  energy  and  dispatch  of  the  Spanish  governor, 
that  on  the  first  of  September  he  was  before  Fort  Bute  with  an 
army  of  fourteen  hundred  men.  The  commandant  refused  to 
capitulate,  and  made  a  brave  resistance  for  five  days,  when  the 
fort  was  carried  by  storm  and  utterly  demolished. 

From  this  point,  the  Spanish  governor,  re-enforced  by  several 
hundred  militia,  including  a  large  number  of  patriotic  Ameri- 
cans, marched  northward  to  Baton  Rouge,  the  strongest  British 


*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  40. 

t  Bee  Btoddart'i  Loniiiana,  p.  75,  7A.    Aluo,  book  iv.,  cl    ?  i.,  of  this  worli. 


438 


IIIRTORY    OF    TIIK 


[dook  III. 


post  on  the  MissisHippi.  ThiM  post  wn«  gtirrisoned  with  four 
hundred  regular  troops,  besiden  one  hundred  niihtia ;  nnd  the 
arsenal  was  abundantly  supplied  with  arms,  ordnance,  nnd  all 
kinds  of  military  stores.  Many  of  the  troops,  however,  were 
disabled  by  sickness  and  consequent  debility,  reducing  the  real 
strength  of  the  garrison  fur  below  its  numerical  force.  The  fort 
was  immediately  invested ;  and  on  the  21st  of  September  the 
Spanish  batteries  opened  upon  the  works,  and  after  a  brisk  can- 
nonade and  bombardment  of  two  hours  and  a  half,  the  com- 
mandant,  Colonel  Dickinson,  proposed  to  capitulate,  and  terms 
were  speedily  arranged. 

In  this  capitulation,  Colonel  Dickinson  surrendered  to  the 
King  of  Spain,  not  only  the  post  of  Baton  Uouge,  but  also  all 
that  portion  of  West  Florida  near  the  Mississippi  River,  includ- 
ing Fort  Panmure  at  Natchez,  one  small  fort  and  garrison  on 
the  Amiie,  and  another  at  Thompson's  Creek.  Thus  Spain  be- 
came possessed  of  West  Florida  eastward  to  Pearl  River,  and 
Great  Britain  lost  the  last  remnant  of  teritory  in  the  Mississippi 
Valley.  From  this  time,  all  that  portion  of  West  Florida  south 
of  latitude  31°  north,  and  west  of  Pearl  River,  was  known  as 
the  Florida  district  of  Louisiana,  under  the  Spanish  dominion 
for  more  than  thirty  years,  when  the  people  revolted  and  ex- 
pelled the  Spanish  authorities  preparatory  to  its  annexation  to 
the  United  States ;  that  portion  north  of  latitude  31°  was  peace- 
ably surrendered  to  the  United  States  in  1708. 

The  King  of  Spain,  well  pleased  with  the  success  of  Don 
Galvez,  as  a  mark  of  approbation  for  his  energetic  conquest, 
conferred  upon  him  the  rank  and  title  of  brigadier-general,  and 
confided  to  his  judgment  and  valor  the  enterprise  of  reducing 
the  remaining  English  posts  in  Florida  near  the  Gulf  of  Mex- 
ico. 

[A.D.  1780.]  Preparations  were  urged  during  the  winter, 
and  early  in  March  following  General  Galvez  arrived  with  a 
strong  force  before  "  Fort  Charlotte,"  at  Mobile.  The  com- 
mandant refused  to  surrender,  and  a  regular  investment  com- 
menced. After  a  severe  cannonade,  the  commander,  on  the 
14th  of  March,  was  compelled  to  surrender  to  the  Spanish  arms. 
In  the  capitulation  was  comprised  all  the  territory  dependent 
upon  this  post,  or  from  Pearl  River  to  the  Perdido. 

The  same  year  the  Spaniards  of  Upper  Louisiana,  assisted 
by  Colonel  Clark  from  Kaskaskia,  repulsed  an  attack  made 


A.o.  1781.] 


VAU.EY    OF    THE    MIHfllRHIPPI. 


43ft 


upon  St.  Lniiis  by  n  large  body  of  Indinns  from  Mackiiiiiw, 
under  the  coinmund  of  the  (;oinnmndant  of  that  post.* 

Tlie  only  remaining  |M)8t  in  West  Florida  was  that  of  Pon- 
Hacola,  the  headcpiarters  of  the  governor.  This  was  a  rei,'ular 
fortress,  defended  by  a  strong  garrison,  an<l  was  not  t<»  be  re- 
duced without  heavy  artillery  aiul  ample  military  stores,  which 
the  Spanish  commandant  could  not  at  once  command.  Conse- 
quently, he  returned  to  New  Orleans  to  provide  for  the  reduc- 
tion of  this  important  post,  whereby  the  whole  of  West  Florida 
would  be  again  restored  to  the  crown  of  S|)ain. 

During  the  remainder  of  this  year  the  intrepid  Galve?,  was 
unremitting  in  his  efforts  to  reduce  Ponsacola.  Twice  hail  he 
advan(;cd  his  forces  by  land  and  sea  to  the  investment  of  the 
devoted  post,  and  twice  had  his  utmost  efi'orts  failed  toefl'ect  a 
breach  in  the  walls,  or  to  compel  the  commander  to  capitulate, 
although  reduced  to  the  greatest  extremities.  At  length  ho  de- 
termined to  withdraw  his  forces  to  Mobile  and  New  Orleans, 
and  at  Havana  seek  re-enforcements  and  a  heavy  train  of  ar- 
tillery from  the  powerful  armament  which  was  expected  in 
that  port  under  the  command  of  Admiral  Solano. 

[A.D.  1781.]  But  it  was  not  until  the  last  of  February  fol- 
lowing that  he  had  sufficiently  completed  his  preparations,  and 
set  out  for  the  harbor  of  I'ensacola.  Having  encountered  a  se- 
vere gale  on  the  way,  with  considerable  injury  to  his  fleet,  lie 
did  not  reach  the  Bay  of  Pensacola  until  the  9th  of  March,  when 
he  proceeded  to  invest  the  British  fortress  by  land  and  sea. 
Yet  such  was  the  terrible  cannonade  kept  up  by  the  garrison 
upon  the  Spanish  fleet,  that  it  was  not  until  the  10th  of  March 
that  the  vessels  of  war  could  take  their  position  to  bombard  the 
fort. 

Having  at  length  completed  several  land  batteries  in  the  rear 
of  the  fort,  by  which  the  enemy's  fire  was  diverted  from  the 
fleet,  the  vessels  immediately  took  their  position  and  o[)ened 
the  bombardment.  The  garrison  bravely  defended  the  fortress 
to  the  last  extremity,  although  the  fire  from  the  united  batteries 
of  the  fleet  and  land  was  so  destructive  that  the  men  were  re- 
peatedly driven  from  their  guns.  Yet  for  more  than  thirty 
days  the  garrison  continued  to  resist  every  renewed  assault  ol 
the  Spaniards,  until  the  Hih  of  May,  when  a  shot  from  f)ne  of 
the  Spanish  batteries  lodgecl  in  the  magazine,  producing  a  most 

*  ticc  buok  iv.,  cliap  iii.,  o(  this  wurk,  for  a  full  account  of  this  expedition. 


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440  HISTORY    OF   THE   VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISSIPPL    [bOOK  III. 

awful  explosion,  and  completely  demolishing  their  works. 
They  were  now  completely  exposed  to  the  enemy's  fire,  and 
deprived  of  their  ammunition ;  and  further  resistance  being  im- 
practicable, the  commandant,  Colonel  Campbell,  proposed  to 
capitulate.  A  suspension  of  hostilities  accordingly  took  place, 
and  on  the  9th,  articles  of  capitulation  were  signed  and  ex- 
changed. In  this  capitulation  Colonel  Campbell,  after  a  heroic 
defense,  surrendered  the  Fort  and  Port  of  Pensacola,  including 
the  garrison  of  eight  hundred  men,  and  all  the  stores  and  ord- 
nance, together  with  the  whole  province  of  West  Florida.* 

East  Florida  subsequently  yielded  to  the  victorious  arms  of 
his  Catholic  majesty,  and  the  whole  of  Florida,  including  the 
eastern  and  western  districts,  were  fully  confirmed  to  the  crown 
of  Spain  by  the  treaty  of  peace  in  1783. 

Thus  terminated  the  British  dominion  upon  the  Lower  Mis- 
sissippi, two  years  after  its  termination  upon  the  Ohio  and  in 
the  Illinois  country,  and  after  an  occupancy  of  less  than  twen- 
ty years  from  the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  the  same  region. 

For  the  acquisition  of  this  great  and  fertile  region,  Great 
Britain  had  contended  with  Fraqce  for  more  than  sixty  years, 
at  an  immense  cost  of  blood  and  treasure,  expended  in  no  less 
than  five  long  and  expensive  wars,  and  great  human  suffering 
by  sea  and  land.  The  occupancy  was  but  short,  and  after  a 
vexatious  possession  of  less  than  one  third  the  period  she  had 
been  engaged  in  the  contest  for  its  acquisition,  she  was  doomed 
by  the  inexorable  decree  of  fate  to  be  exiled  from  it,  together 
with  all  her  extensive  provinces  contiguous.  Such  are  the 
great  political  revolutions  by  which  an  all- wise  Providence  sees 
proper  to  rule  the  great  moral  universe  of  mankind  in  fulfilling 
the  destinies  of  nations. 

*  Martin's  Lonisiana.    Also,  Stoddart,  p.  78. 

Btoddart  says  the  capitalation  included  "  about  one  thousand  men."  The  whole  nnm- 
ber  iu  the  garrison  and  vicinity  of  Pensacola  was  about  that  number ;  but  during  tho 
siege  about  one  hundred  of  the  English  had  been  killed,  and  double  that  number  had 
been  severely  wounded.    The  Spanish  loss,  of  course,  was  much  less. — Stoddart,  p.  79. 


BOOK    IV. 

SPAIN  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


CHAPTER  I. 

LOUISIANA  UNDER  THE  DOMINION   OF   SPAIN   FROM  THE  DISMEMBER- 
MENT TO  THE  EXPULSION  OF  THE  ENGLISH   FROM  FLORIDA. A.D. 

1763  TO  1783. 

Argument. — Extent  of  Spanish  Louisiana. — Repugnance  of  the  French  of  West  Flor- 
ida to  the  English  Dominion. — French  Opposition  to  the  Spanish  Dominion  in  Loui- 
siana.— Spain  indulges  their  Prejudices  by  deferring  her  Jurisdiction. — Public  Re- 
monstrances and  Petitions  against  the  Transfer  to  Spain. — Jean  Milhet  sent  a  Dele- 
gate to  Paris. — His  Mission  unsuccessful. — Arrival  of  Don  UUoa  as  Spanish  Commis- 
sioner in  New  Orleans. — He  delays  tlie  formal  Transfer  of  the  Province. — French 
Population  in  Louisiana  in  1766. — Spanish  Troops  arrive  for  the  diiferent  Posts. — 
Popular  Excitement  against  UUoa. — The  Superior  Courcjl  requires  him  to  leave  the 
Province  or  produce  his  Commission. — He  retires  on  Board  a  Spanish  Man-of-war. — 
Perilous  Condition  of  the  prominent  Malecoutents. — Second  Convention. — Second  Mis- 
sion to  Paris. — General  O'Reilly  arrives  at  the  Balizo  with  a  strong  Spanish  Force. 
— He  notifies  Aubry  of  his  Arrival  and  his  Powers, — His  Professions  of  Lenity. — 
Ceremony  of  Transfer,  August  18th,  1709. — The  Flag  of  Spain  displaces  that  of  Franco. 
— Population  of  Louisiana  in  1769. — Settlements  of  Upper  Louisiana. — Arrest  of 
twelve  prominent  French  Citizens. — Their  Trials,  Imprisonment,  and  Execution. — 
Spanish  Jurisdiction  formally  introduced  in  the  Province. — "  Superior  Council"  super- 
seded by  the  "  Cabaldo." — Inferior  Courts  organized. — Rules  of  procedure  in  the 
Courts. — Spanish  Emigrants  arrive. — Summary  of  O'Reilly's  Administration. — Sub- 
sequent Spanish  Rule. — Commerce  and  Agriculture  under  Unzaga's  mild  Rule. — 
Population  of  Upper  Louisiana  in  1776. — Galvez  Governor  of  Louisiana. — British 
Traders  from  Florida  endeavor  to  monopolize  the  Trade  of  the  Mississippi. — Spain 
favorable  to  the  American  Revolution. — Oliver  Pollock  and  Captain  Willing  in  New 
Orleans. — Spain  espouses  the  War  against  Great  Britain. — West  Florida  invaded 
by  Governor  Galvez. — Fort  Charlotte  captured  in  1780. — Unsuccessful  Attack  on 
Pensacola. — Attack  on  St.  Louis  by  British  and  Indians  fi-om  Mackinaw. — Repulsed 
by  Spaniards  and  Americans. — Bombardment  and  Capture  of  Pensacola,  May  9th, 
1781. — Surrender  of  West  Florida. — Cession  of  East  Florida  to  Spain. — Revolt  in 
the  Natchez  District,  and  Capture  of  Fort  Panmure  in  1781. — Proceedings  of  the 
Spanish  Authorities  against  the  Insurgents. — Treaty  of  1783  concluded. — Revival  of 
Agricultural  and  commercial  Enterprise. 

[A.D.  1763.]  The  boundaries  of  Spanish  Louisiana,  after 
the  dismemberment,  comprised,  as  we  h.ave  already  stated,*  all 
that  vast  unknown  region  west  of  the  Mississippi  River,  from 
its  sources  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  extending  westward  to 
the  extreme  sources  of  all  its  great  western  tributaries  among 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  included,  also,  the  Island  of  New 
Orleans,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi,  and  south  of  the 
Bayou  Iberville.     On  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  it  comprised  the  whole 

*  See  book  ii.,  chap,  x-,  of  this  work. 


442 


HISTORY    OF   TIIK 


[nooK  IV. 


coast,  from  Lake  Borgne  on  the  east,  to  the  Bay  of  St.  Ber- 
nard and  the  Colorado  River  on  the  west,  with  an  unsettled 
claim  to  the  territory  westward  to  the  Rio  Bravo  del  Norte. 
Of  course,  it  included  the  Mississippi  River,  with  the  western 
bank  above  the  Iberville,  and  both  banks  from  the  Iberville  to 
the  Balize. 

The  troops  of  Great  Britain  had  already  taken  possession  of 
Florida,  and  that  portion  of  Louisiana  lying  east  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, and  north  of  the  Iberville  or  Manchac  Bayou.  Many 
of  the  French  in  that  region,  dissatisfied  with  the  idea  of  com- 
ing under  the  dominion  of  England,  had  retired  to  the  western 
side  of  the  river,  believing  they  would  still  be  within  the  do- 
minion of  France.  But  soon  it  became  rumored  that  Western 
Louisiana  also  had  been  ceded  to  a  foreign  power.  Many  be- 
came highly  excited  and  greatly  alarmed  when  it  was  intima- 
ted that  this  portion  of  Louisiana  had  been  ceded  to  the  crown 
of  Spain.  These  rumors  were  confirmed  by  dispatches  from 
the  French  court  early  in  October,  1763,  announcing  the  ces- 
sion of  Western  Louisiana  to  his  Catholic  majesty.  M.  de 
Abadie,  the  governor  and  director-general  ad  interim,  was  fur- 
nished with  instructions  by  which  he  was  to  be  governed  in 
surrendering  the  province  into  the  hands  of  the  authorized 
agents  of  Spain,  when  they  should  be  duly  empowered  and 
commissioned  to  receive  it  from  him. 

In  the  mean  time,  such  was  the  state  of  excitement  and  dis- 
satisfaction among  the  French  population  of  Louisiana,  that  for 
nearly  two  years  subsequently  no  active  measures  were  taken 
by  the  Spanish  crown  to  take  formal  possession  of  the  prov- 
ince. It  was  hoped  by  the  court  of  Madrid  that  a  few  months 
would  suflice  to  cool  down  the  excitement,  and  to  allay  the  dis- 
satisfaction which  had  manifested  itself  so  generally  in  the  prov- 
ince ;  hence  it  had  been  deemed  expedient  to  permit  the  for- 
mer French  authorities  to  administer  the  civil  government  under 
the  laws  and  usages  of  France,  as  if  it  were  still  a  French  de- 
pendence. But  the  people  seemed  unwilling  to  abandon  their 
prejudices,  or  in  any  wise  to  become  reconciled  to  the  change 
of  dominion.* 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  court  of  Madrid  declined  to 
press  the  formal  delivery  of  the  province  and  the  extension  of 
the  Spanish  jurisdiction.     Yet  the  population  evinced  no  dis- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  348,  349. 


A.D.  1766.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


443 


position  to  submit  peaceably  to  the  Spanish  dominion :  but  a 
determination  to  resist  was  plainly  indicated  among  all  classes. 
All  the  prominent  citizens  seemed  still  to  retain  their  first  im- 
pressions and  prejudices  against  a  foreign  yoke,  and  all  joined 
in  deprecating  subjection  to  the  Spanish  king.  They  still  hoped 
to  avert  the  fulfillment  of  the  treaty  by  appeals  and  petitions  to 
the  throne  of  France,  and  they  left  untried  no  eflfort  by  which 
they  hoped  to  influence  the  royal  decision. 

Early  in  the  year  1765,  a  general  meeting  of  the  principal 
inhabitants  and  planters  of  the  province  convened  in  the  city 
of  New  Orleans,  for  the  purpose  of  discussing  freely  the  subject 
of  their  distracted  condition,  and  for  sending  to  the  throne  of 
France  their  united  appeals  and  prayers  for  the  royal  inter- 
position in  their  behalf.  The  meeting  was  attended  by  a  nu- 
merous assemblage,  and  the  whole  subject  was  freely  discussed 
before  the  people,  when  it  was  resolved  unanimously  to  send 
M.  Jean  Milhet,  a  wealthy  merchant,  as  a  delegate  to  France,  to 
lay  their  memorial  at  the  feet  of  the  king. 

In  their  petition  they  entreated  the  king  to  make  such  ar- 
rangements with  his  Catholic  majesty  as  might  obviate  the  ne- 
cessity of  a  separation  of  his  faithful  subjects  from  the  paternal 
rule  of  France.  M.  Milhet  arrived  in  Paris,  and,  to  give  effect 
to  his  embassy,  he  appeared  before  the  prime  minister  in  com- 
pany with  the  aged  Bienville,  "  the  father  of  Louisiana,"  now 
in  his  eighty-seventh  year,  whose  entreaties  were  joined  v/ith 
those  of  the  whole  province ;  but  the  complaints  and  remon- 
strances of  the  Spanish  court  had  preceded  them,  and  had  pre- 
pared the  minister  and  the  king  to  disregard  their  petitions. 

[A.D.  1766.].  The  minister  was  averse  to  the  prayer  of  the 
petitioners,  and  artfully  prevented  M.  Milhet  from  an  interview 
with  the  king.  After  many  unavailing  efforts  on  his  part,  M. 
Milhet,  discouraged  at  the  apathy  of  the  court,  returned  to 
Louisiana,  and  reported  the  result  of  his  unsuccessful  mission. 
Still  the  people  would  not  despair  until  the  result  of  a  second 
mission  should  be  known.  But  the  second  mission  of  M.  Mil- 
het the  following  year  was  equally  unsuccessful,  and  all  hope 
of  evading  the  Spanish  yoke  began  to  vanish. 

Two  years  had  now  elapsed  since  D'Abadie,  the  director- 
general  of  the  province,  had  received  instructions  for  the  deliv- 
ery of  the  country  to  the  proper  authorities  of  his  Catholic  maj- 
esty.    The  delusive  hope  of  remaining  under  the  dominion 


. 


■w 


v 


444 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


of  France  did  not  forsake  them  until  late  in  the  month  of  July, 
when  a  formal  notice  was  received  to  the  director-general  in 
New  Orleans,  by  a  messenger  from  Havana,  that  Don  Antonio 
de  Ulloa,  commissioner  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  would  repair 
to  New  Orleans  in  the  autumn  for  the  purpose  of  receiving 
formal  possession  of  the  province. 

Accordingly,  he  arrived  in  New  Orleans,  accompanied  by 
two  companies  of  Spanish  infantry,  where  he  was  received  by 
the  people  with  constrained  and  silent  respect.  Perceiving  the 
remaining  dissatisfaction,  and  the  violence  of  the  popular  prej- 
udice against  the  Spanish  authority,  Don  UUoa  deemed  it  pru- 
dent to  refrain  from  the  exercise  of  his  authority,  and  declined  to 
present  his  commission  for  receiving  possession  of  the  province 
until  he  should  be  sustained  by  such  re-enforcements  from  Ha- 
vana as  would  justify  the  departure  of  the  French  troops.  Un- 
til the  arrival  of  such  troops  from  Havana,  he  determined  to 
spend  a  few  weeks  in  visiting  the  different  military  posts  of 
Louisiana,  and  especially  the  old  Spanish  settlement  of  the 
Adaus,  and  the  post  at  Natchitoches. 

The  population  of  Spanish  Louisiana  at  this  time  was  esti- 
mated at  something  more  than  ten  thousand  souls,  of  whom 
five  thousand  five  hundred  and  fifty-six  were  whites ;  the  re- 
mainder were  negro  slaves.  Among  the  whites  were  nearly 
one  thousand  nine  hundred  men  capable  of  bearing  arms,  and 
one  thousand  four  hundred  and  forty-four  marriageable  wom- 
en, besides  one  thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy-five  boys, 
and  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  forty  girls.* 

[A.D.  1767.]  At  length  the  troops  expected  from  Havana 
arrived ;  but  still  Don  Ulloa  declined  to  produce  his  commis- 
sion, and  deferring  the  formal  reception  of  the  province,  dis- 
tributed the  troops  among  the  different  military  posts,  to  re- 
lieve the  French  troops  on  duty.  The  Spanish  government 
doubtless  desired  to  effect  the  transfer  of  sovereignty  with  as 
little  violence  to  the  prejudices  of  the  people  as  was  practica- 
ble, and  quietly  to  occupy  the  military  posts  while  the  civil 
jurisdiction  was  undisturbed,  until  the  people  should  gradually 
become  reconciled  to  the  new  order  of  government.  Yet  the 
delays  and  ihe  temporizing  movements  of  Don  Ulloa  served 
only  to  irritate  the  unsettled  and  suspicious  apprehensions  of 
the  people.    Many  anxiously  expected  the  return  of  M.  Milhet, 

*  Martin's  Loaiiiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  3S4. 


A.D. 


1708.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MlSSISaiPri. 


445 


who  was  still  in  France ;  and  a  lingering  hope  still  remained 
that  his  efforts  might  yet  be  successful  in  averting  the  transfer. 
At  length  he  returned,  a  second  time  unsuccessful,  when  all  hope 
suddenly  vanished.  Many  became  desperate  ;  and  others,  ex- 
asperated aj  their  disappointment,  began  to  manifest  their  op- 
position to  Don  UUoa,  who  still  declined  a  public  official  recog- 
nition of  his  authority  as  commissioner.  Yet  he  was  upon  in- 
timate terms  with  the  French  director-general,  Mons.  Aubry, 
who  had  succeeded  D'Abadie ;  and  the  people  became  jealous 
of  the  influence  which  he  might  exert  against  them.  Public 
meetings  were  held  in  the  different  settlements  and  in  the  city. 
Each  meeting  elected  delegates  to  a  general  meeting,  or  con- 
vention, to  be  held  in  New  Orleans.  This  convention  resolved 
to  petition  the  Superior  Council  to  direct  Don  Ulloa  and  the 
principal  Spanish  officers  to  leave  the  province.  The  petition 
was  signed  by  five  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  most  wealthy  and 
respectable  citizens  and  planters.  Ulloa  was  denounced,  and 
threatened  as  a  disturber  of  the  peace,  and  all  viewed  his  pres- 
ence in  the  province  with  jealousy  and  suspicion.  Many  be- 
lieved the  formal  reception  of  the  province  was  designedly  de- 
layed for  state  purposes,  and  none  knew  how  deeply  they 
might  be  interested  personally  in  the  result. 

[A.D.  1768.]  During  the  summer  of  1768,  rumor  gave  no- 
tice of  the  arrival  of  a  powerful  Spanish  fleet  at  Havana,  and 
that  its  ultimate  destination  was  the  province  of  Louisiana. 
Strong  apprehensions  were  aroused  in  the  public  mind.  Many 
expected  the  people  would  be  driven  to  open  resistance,  with 
all  its  consequent  horrors.  The  English  authorities  of  West 
Florida  were  consulted  for  aid,  in  case  matters  were  urged  to 
extremities ;  but  no  encouragement  was  given.  At  length,  on 
the  29th  of  October,  the  popular  anxiety  and  excitement  be- 
came so  extreme,  that  the  Superior  Council,  overruling  the  op- 
position and  protest  of  Aubry,  the  president,  deemed  it  expedi- 
ent to  require  Don  Ulloa  to  produce  his  commission  and  cre- 
dentials from  the  Spanish  court,  for  verification  and  record  in 
the  minutes  of  their  proceedings,  or  to  depart  from  the  province 
within  one  month.  This  decree  of  the  council  was  sustained 
by  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans  and  of  the  Ger- 
man coast,  and  six  hundred  armed  men  stood  ready  to  enforce 
obedience  to  the  order.  Under  these  alarming  appearances, 
and  the  increasing  discontent  of  the  people,  Don  Ulloa  deter- 


4* 


I  'I' 


I    I': 


ji.     * 


446 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


mined,  without  further  delay,  to  retire  from  Louisiana  into  the 
Island  of  Cuba.  He  retired  on  board  one  of  the  king's  vessels 
then  moored  opposite  the  city,  where  he  remained  until  night 
of  the  following  day,  when  the  cables  were  cut  by  the  popu- 
lace and  the  vessel  was  set  adrift.  Other  Spanish  vessels  soon 
left  the  port.* 

Things  had  now  remained  in  this  state  of  anxious  suspense 
for  nearly  three  years.  The  people  determined,  since  the 
Spanish  vessels  and  commissioner  were  gone,  to  make  one 
more  effort  with  the  King  of  France  to  avert  the  dreaded  trans- 
fer. A  mere  difference  of  opinion,  and  a  discontented  mind, 
had  now  become  an  offense  against  the  authority  of  Spain;  and 
the  consequences  to  them,  personally,  might  well  be  appre- 
hended as  any  thing  but  desirable,  especially  to  such  as  had 
been  most  active  in  expressing  their  dissatisfaction.  A  gen- 
eral meeting,  or  convention,  of  all  the  delegates  from  the  par- 
ishes was  again  convened  at  New  Orleans.  From  this  con- 
vention two  members  were  selected,  and  commissioned  to  re- 
pair with  all  haste  and  lay  the  petition  and  entreaties  from  the 
province  of  Louisiana  once  more  before  the  king.  The  two 
delegates  selected  were  M.  St.  Lette,  of  Natchitoches,  and  M. 
La  Sassier,  a  member  of  the  Superior  Council.f 

[A.D.  1769.]  In  March  following,  the  Spanish  intendant 
for  Louisiana  arrived  at  Havana ;  but  learning  from  Don  UI- 
loa  the  popular  excitement  and  the  general  discontent,  he  de- 
clined proceeding  to  New  Orleans,  and  finally  returned  to  Spain. 
The  delegates  had  proceeded  to  Paris ;  but  the  voyage  across 
the  Atlantic  had  been  long  and  tedious,  and  they  arrived  too 
late.  A  large  Spanish  force  was  in  readiness  to  sail  for  the 
Mississippi,  to  silence  all  opposition  against  the  dominion  of 
Spain.  Apprehending  much  resistance  in  the  province,  the 
King  of  Spain  had  prepared  a  formidable  army,  to  proceed  to 
Louisiana  under  one  of  his  most  energetic  generals.  Don 
Alexander  O'Reilly,  lieutenant-general  in  the  armies  of  Spain, 
had  been  appointed  governor  and  captain-general  of  the  prov- 
ince of  Louisiana  by  the  king's  commission,  dated  at  Aranjuez, 
April  16,  1769.  With  a  strong  military  force  at  his  disposal, 
he  was  now  on  the  Atlantic,  sailing  for  the  mouth  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. 

At  New  Orleans,  things  remained  tranquil  until  the  23d  of 


*  Martin's  Louiaiaaa,  vol.  i.,  p.  356, 359. 


t  Idem,  p.  359. 


A.D.  1769.] 


VALLEY  OF    TUB    MI8BIHSIPPI. 


447 


23d  of 

359. 


July,  when  intelligence  was  received  that  a  strong  Spanish  ar- 
mament, with  four  thousand  five  hundred  troops  on  board,  had 
arrived  at  the  Balize,  on  their  way  to  New  Orleans.  On  the 
day  following,  Governor  Aubry  received  by  express  a  dispatch 
from  Don  Alexander  O'Reilly,  commander  of  the  Spanish 
forces,  notifying  him  that  he  was  duly  authorized  to  receive 
formal  possession  of  the  province  of  Louisiana  in  the  name  of 
the  King  of  Spain.  He  expressed  himself  desirous  of  main- 
taining a  good  understanding  between  the  authorities  of  Spain 
and  the  people  of  Louisiana,  but  with  a  fnm  determination  to 
put  down  all  opposition,  and  to  extend  the  jurisdiction  of  his 
sovereign  over  the  province.* 

On  the  27th  of  July,  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  was  convened, 
from  whom  were  selected  three  persons,  M.  Grandmaison,  town- 
major,  Lafreni^re,  attorney-general,  and  M.  Mazent,  a  wealthy 
planter,  as  delegates  to  Don  O'Reilly,  informing  him  of  their 
determination  to  abandon  the  province,  and  praying  only  the 
favor  of  permission  to  remove,  with  their  effects,  within  two 
years.  The  Spanish  captain-general  received  the  delegates 
with  courtesy,  and  returned  a  conciliatory  reply.  He  promised 
that  all  former  occurrences  should  be  forgotten ;  that  to  all  who 
proved  themselves  good  citizens,and  yielded  a  proper  obedience 
to  the  Spanish  authority,  all  former  acts  should  be  buried  in 
oblivion,  and  all  offenses  should  be  forgiven  to  those  who  re- 
turned to  their  duty. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  people  of  the  German  and  Acadian 
coasts  were  still  in  arms,  and  refused  to  submit  to  the  Spanish 
government.  A  considerable  body  of  them,  conducted  by  M. 
Villiere,had  marched  down  to  the  city,  where  they  arrived  on 
the  first  of  August. 

About  two  weeks  afterward,  t^ah  Spanish  armament  cast  an- 
chor before  the  city  of  New  Orleans ;  and  in  two  days  more 
the  troops  finally  disembarked,  and  were  marched  into  the 
public  square  in  front  of  the  government  buildings.  Here,  on 
the  18th  of  August,  in  presence  of  a  large  concourse  of  people, 
and  before  the  troops  of  both  powers,  the  public  ceremony  of 
delivering  the  province  to  the  Spanish  governor  was  perform- 
ed, when  the  flag  of  France  slowly  descended  from  the  top 
of  the  flag-staflf,  greeting  that  of  Spain  as  it  mounted  aloft 
before  the  assembled  multitude,  and  was  cheered  by  the  troops 

"  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  i.,  p.  3C1. 


..:;5L. 


448 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


of  both  nations.  The  Spanish  authority  was  forthwith  pro- 
claimed dominant  over  the  whole  province.* 

Thus  was  Louisiana,  on  the  18th  of  August,  1700,  and  about 
seventy  years  after  its  first  colonization  under  Iberville,  forev- 
er lost  to  France.  During  the  period  of  its  colonial  depend- 
ence on  France,  it  had  slowly  augmented  its  population  from 
a  few  destitute  fishermen  and  hunters  to  a  flourishing  colony 
of  twelve  thousand  souls,  distributed  in  several  important  set- 
tlements, besides  the  city  and  vicinity  of  New  Orleans. 

At  this  period  there  had  been  for  many  years  quite  a  lucra- 
tive trade  between  the  Illinois  country  and  Lower  Louisiana 
in  the  mutual  exchange  of  their  respective  commodities.  For 
more  than  ten  years  past,  Louisiana  had  carried  on  quite  a  re- 
spectable foreign  trade  through  the  ports  of  New  Orleans  and 
Mobile.  During  the  last  year,  the  exports  of  the  province 
were  valued  at  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  embra- 
cing the  following  articles  and  amounts  respectively,  viz. :  In- 
digo, valued  at  one  hundred  thousand  dollars ;  deer-skins,  to 
the  value  of  eighty  thousand  dollars ;  lumber,  to  the  value  of 
fifty  thousand  dollars  ;  and  other  miscellaneous  articles,  to  the 
value  of  twenty  thousand  dollars.*  Cotton  and  sugar  had  not 
become  articles  of  export. 

Don  O'Reilly  entered  upon  the  discharge  of  the  duties  per- 
taining to  his  station  with  every  outward  mark  of  respect  from 
all  classes  of  the  population.  Tranquillity  soon  prevailed  over 
the  whole  province;  but  great  anxiety  was  entertained  by 
many  as  to  the  subsequent  policy  and  designs  of  the  new  gov- 
ernor. 

The  first  act  of  his  administration  was  to  order  a  complete 
census  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans.  This  was  accomplished 
with  great  accuracy,  and  presented  an  aggregate  of  3190  souls. 
Of  these,  1803  persons  were  free  whites ;  31  were  free  blacks; 
68  were  of  mixed  blood  ;  1225  were  slaves,  and  60  were  do- 
mesticated Indians.  The  city  contained  468  houses  of  all  de- 
scriptions. 

The  population  of  the  province,  exclusive  of  New  Orleans, 
amounted  to  ten  thousand  two  hundred  and  forty-eight  souls, 
exclusive  of  about  fifteen  hundred  souls  who  were  comprised 
in  the  district  of  West  Florida,  under  the  dominion  of  Great 
Britain. 

*  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  363.    Stoddart'a  Louisiana,  p.  73.  t  Martin,  vol.  i.,  p.  363. 


A.D.   1700.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MI88IH8IPPI. 


440 


■^hus  the  aggregate  population  of  Spanish  Louisiana  at  the 
period  of  the  transfer,  including  the  settlements  on  the  Upper 
Mississippi,  was  about  thirteen  thousand  five  hundred  and  forty 
souls.* 

Up  to  this  time  but  few  habitations  had  been  made  on  the 
west  bank  of  the  Mississippi  above  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  The 
oldest  of  these  was  St.  Genevieve,  first  settled  by  a  few  French 
families  in  the  year  1751.  There  were  several  other  small 
settlements  of  more  recent  date,  but  none  of  much  importance 
except  St.  Louis,  which  received  its  principal  population  after 
the  cession  of  the  Illinois  country  to  Great  Britain,  as  did  most 
of  the  other  small  towns  in  this  quarter.  The  site  of  St.  Louis 
was  first  selected  for  a  town  by  M.  la  Clede,  in  the  year  1764, 
when  it  was  made  the  general  depot  for  the  fur-trade. 

Although  Governor  O'Reilly  had  promised  pardon  to  all  who 
submitted  quietly  to  his  authority,  and  oblivion  for  all  past  of- 
fenses, he  had  resolved  to  except  and  to  punish  the  principal  in- 
stigators of  the  late  discontent,  and  the  former  opposition  to  the 
Spanish  authority.  This  determination  was  artfully  concealed 
until  about  the  last  of  August,  when,  by  an  act  of  treachery  and 
dissimulation,  he  first  made  known  his  designs  by  the  arrest  of 
four  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  of  the  province.  These 
were  M.  Focault,  former  commissary-general  and  ordonnateur, 
M.  de  Noyant  and  M.  Boisblanc,  two  members  of  the  former 
Superior  Council,  M.  la  Freni^re,  former  attorney-general,  and 
M.  Brand,  the  king's  printer. 

These  men,  confiding  in  his  professions  of  esteem  and  friend- 
ship, accepted  an  invitation  to  attend  his  Iev6e ;  and,  while  en- 
joying the  hospitality  of  his  house,  were,  with  true  Spanish 
treachery,  invited  by  O'Reilly  himself  into  an  adjoining  apart- 
ment, where  they  soon  found  themselves  surrounded  by  a  body 

*  The  population,  as  given  by  Martin,  is  as  follows : 

Parishes  and  Settlements,  exclusive  of  New  Orleans, 


1.  Below  the  city  on  the  river  .    .  570 

2.  Bayou  St.  John  and  Gentilly     .  307 

3.  Tchoupitoulas 4193 

4.  St.  Charles 639 

5.  St.  Jean  Baptiste 544 

6.  LaFoorche 267 

7.  Iberville 376 

8.  Point  Couple 783 

Carried  forward,  7678 

— See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  3. 

Vol.  L— F  f 


Brought  forward,  7678 

9.  Attakapas 409 

10.  Avoyelles 314 

11.  Natchitoches 811 

12.  Rapides 47 

13.  Washita 110 

14.  Arkansas 88 

15.  St.  Louis,  or  Upper  Louisiana  891 

10348 


450 


IHHTORY    OF    TUB 


[UOUK    IV. 


Il      ' 


of  grenndiers  with  fixed  bayonets,  the  coinriiiinder  of  which, 
informing  them  that  they  were  the  king's  [irisoners,  conveyed 
them  under  a.  military  guard  to  places  of  confinement,  there  to 
await  their  trial. 

O'Reilly  had  determined  to  make  an  example  of  eigiit  other 
prominent  individuals  concerned  in  the  opposition  to  Don  Ul- 
loa's  authority.  Within  a  few  days  afterward,  this  number 
was  completed  by  the  arrest  of  the  following  persons,  agreeably 
to  his  order,  viz. :  M.  Marquis,  officer  of  the  troop ;  M.  Doucet, 
a  lawyer ;  Messrs.  Villierd,  Mazent,  and  Petit,  planters ;  and 
Messrs.  John  Milhet,  Joseph  Milhet,  Caresse,  and  Poupet,  mer- 
chants. 

Soon  after  the  arrest  of  M.  Villifere,  while  in  confinement  on 
board  a  man-of-war,  he  was  visited  by  his  wife,  who  was  not 
permitted  to  enter  his  apartment.  Indignant  at  the  outrage, 
and  frantic  with  despair,  he  attempted  to  force  his  way  to  her, 
when  a  struggle  with  the  guards  ensued,  and  he  was  killed. 
Still  she  was  not  permitted  to  witness  his  last  moments,  and, 
to  aggravate  her  frantic  grief,  his  bloody  shirt  was  afterward 
thrown  out  to  her,  as  evidence  of  his  death,  with  an  order  for 
her  immediate  (departure  from  the  ship.  Such  was  a  speci- 
men of  the  lenity  which  others  might  expect  from  the  mercy 
of  O'Reilly. 

The  remaining  eleven  prisoners  were  soon  put  upon  a  formal 
trial,  charged  with  having  aided  and  abetted  an  insurrection 
against  the  king's  authority,  as  provided  by  the  laws  of  Cas- 
tile and  Spain,  which  were  unknown  in  Louisiana.  The  tri- 
als which  followed  were  hasty,  arbitrary,  and  tyrannical  in  the 
extreme,  evincing  the  vindictive  resolution  of  the  captain-gen- 
eral to  make  an  example  of  those  who  had  been  active  in  the 
late  revolt. 

They  all  pleaded  against  the  jurisdiction,  and  declined  to  be 
tried  by  the  laws  of  Spain,  which  had  not  been  extended  over 
the  province  at  the  time  of  the  alleged  insurrection.  They 
claimed  to  have  been  subjects  of  the  King  of  France ;  that  the 
French  flag  was  then  waving  over  the  province ;  and  that  their 
acts  had  been  in  accordance  with  their  allegiance  and  duty  to 
the  King  of  France :  that  they  owed  no  allegiance  to  the  King 
of  Spain  until  the  Spanish  authority  had  been  proclaimed,  and 
the  Spanish  flag  and  laws  had  duly  superseded  those  of  France  ; 
that  the  acts  charged  could  not  constitute  an  oflense  against 


A.I).  17(10.] 


VAI.LRY   OF    THE    MIHHIrtrtll'PI. 


4il 


igainst 


the  S|»!iiii,sh  liiws  while  those  of  France  retained  their  empire 
f»vcr  the  province;  thfit  Ulloti  h.id  never  made  known  his  iiu- 
thority,  hut  had  studiously  oiice.iled  it,  if,  indeed,  he  were 
<dothed  with  uny ;  that  O'lleilly  could  not  claim  or  ex|)ect  ohe- 
dience  from  the  people  until  he  had  made  known  to  thetn  his 
character  and  powers;  and  that  no  act  was  charged  against 
them  after  this  manifestation  of  his  authority. 

The  |)lea  was  sustained  relative  to  several  who  had  been 
oHlcers  of  the  former  government,  but  was  overruled  in  rela- 
tion to  De  Noyant,  La  Frenidre,  Marquis,  Joseph  Milhet,  and 
Caresse,  who  were  formally  convicted,  and  by  O'Reilly  sen- 
tenced to  be  hanged,  with  confiscation  of  property. 

This  severity,  impolitic  as  it  was  cruel  and  uncalled  for,  was 
justified  by  O'Reilly  as  necessary  to  protect  the  province  against 
other  and  more  daring  combinations,  which  might  convulse  the 
peace  of  the  country  unless  such  offenders  were  brought  to 
punishment.  Such  was  the  plea  of  necessity  with  which  he  vin- 
dicated his  acts  of  cruel  revenge,  if  not  his  atrocious  treachery. 

Consternation  and  fear  fell  upon  oil  the  French  residents, 
and  none  could  deem  themselves  safe  against  arbitrary  power; 
and  from  the  sullen  silence  observed  by  O'Reilly,  they  knew 
not  how  far  he  might  be  disposed  to  wreak  his  vengeance  upon 
those  who  might  be  obnoxious  to  his  displeasure.* 

The  victims  enjoyed  but  a  short  respite  between  conviction 
and  the  execution  of  their  sentence.  O'Reilly  remained  inex- 
orable to  the  most  earnest  entreaties  from  persons  of  every 
rank  in  the  community,  that  he  would  suspend  the  sentence  of 
death  until  the  royal  clemency  could  be  implored.  The  only 
concession  he  would  grant  was  the  commutation  of  death  by 
hanging  to  death  by  fire-arms,  or  military  execution. 

On  the  28th  of  September  all  the  troops  were  under  arms, 
and  were  paraded  through  the  streets  until  noon,  when  they 
were  stationed  in  martial  order  along  the  levee  and  in  the 
public  square.  Alarm  and  apprehension  spread  through  the 
city,  and  many  of  the  inhabitants  fled  into  the  country.  The 
troops  were  kept  under  arms  until  three  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, when  the  victims  were  marched  to  a  small  square  in  front 
of  the  barracks,  where  they  were  bound  to  stakes  and  blind- 
folded. In  a  few  moments  more  a  loud  discharge  of  musketry 
announced  to  the  remaining  inhabitants  that  their  friends  were 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  5-7. 


452 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


no  more.*  Thus  terminated  the  sacrifice  of  the  first  victims 
of  O'Reilly's  tyranny. 

The  proceedings  against  the  other  prisoners  were  suspended 
for  a  few  weeks,  afiar  which  the  following  persons  were  sen- 
tenced to  imprisonment  in  the  Moro  Castle  at  Havana  for  dif- 
ferent terms,  viz. :  Messieurs  Boisblanc,  John  Milhet,  Petit,  and 
Poupet.  It  was  not  long  before  they  were  shipped  to  Havana, 
to  take  their  cells  in  the  Moro  Castle,  where  they  remained  un- 
til the  following  year,  when  they  were  discharged  by  order  of 
the  king.f 

O'Reilly  proceeded  to  abolish  the  French  courts  and  the  mu- 
nicipal regulations,  and  to  substitute  those  of  Spain.  On  the 
21st  of  November  he  issued  his  proclamation  for  the  abolition 
of  the  Superior  Council,  which  he  alleged  had  been  deeply  im- 
plicated in  the  former  treasonable  movements  against  the  Span- 
ish authority,  as  appeared  from  the  testimony  elicited  during 
the  late  trials. 

In  place  of  the  Superior  Council,  he  established  the  Cabaldo, 
constituted  of  six  perpetual  regidors,  two  ordinary  alcaldes,  one 
attorney-general  syndic,  and  one  clerk.  The  offices  of  perpet- 
ual regidors  and  clerk  were  to  be  acquired  by  purchase,  and, 
on  certain  conditions,  were  transferable.  The  ordinary  alcaldes 
and  attorney-general  syndic  were  to  be  chosen  on  the  first  day 
of  every  year  by  the  Cabaldo,  and  might  be  re-eligible  by  the 
unanimous  vote  of  the  Cabaldo.  Thus  the  high  court  was  made 
virtually  perpetual  and  self-constituted.  The  inferior  civil  of- 
fices were  filled  chiefly  with  French  citizens  of  Louisiana. 

The  ordinary  alcaldes  were  vested  with  judicial  powers  in- 
dividually within  the  city,  in  common  civil  and  criminal  cases. 
The  attorney-general  syndic  was  not  a  prosecuting  officer  of 
the  crown,  as  his  title  might  seem  to  indicate,  but  his  duty  was 
to  propose  to  the  Cabaldo  such  measures  as  the  interests  of  the 
people  required,  and  to  defend  their  rights  from  invasion. 

The  Cabaldo  was  a  high  court  and  a  legislative  council,  at 
which  the  governor  presided.  In  its  judicial  capacity  it  exer- 
cised only  appellate  jurisdiction,  in  appeals  carried  up  from  the 
alcalde  courts.  The  Cabaldo  sat  every  Friday,  and  it  was  sub- 
ject to  be  convened  at  any  time  by  a  call  from  the  governor.^ 

The  Cabaldo  being  duly  organized,  the  governor  surrendered 
the  chair,  or  the  presidency  in  that  body,  to  Don  Louis  de  Un- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  5-7.  f  Idem,  p.  8.  t  Idem,  p.  9, 10 


A.D. 


1770.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


453 


zaga,  colonel  in  the  regiment  of  Havana,  who  had  been  desig- 
nated as  the  future  governor  of  the  province  after  O'Reilly's 
departure.* 

The  next  step  taken  by  O'Reilly  in  organizing  the  new  gov- 
ernment was  to  cause  a  set  of  instructions  to  be  prepared  for 
the  regulation  of  proceedings  in  civil  and  criminal  cases,  to  be 
conducted  in  the  courts  agreeably  to  the  laws  and  usages  of 
Castile  and  the  Indies.  Other  minor  regulations  were  prepared 
for  the  government  of  the  probate  courts  and  the  succession  of 
estates.  A  commandant,  with  the  rank  of  captain,  was  ap- 
pointed for  each  parish,  with  authority  to  exercise  a  mixed  civil 
and  military  jurisdiction ;  being  an  officer  of  the  peace,  he  had 
authority  to  enforce  all  general  police  regulations,  and  to  de- 
cide all  controversies  in  which  the  amount  did  not  exceed 
twenty  dollars.  The  Spanish  language  was  made  the  tongue 
in  which  the  judicial  records  throughout  the  province  were  to 
be  kept  and  the  proceedings  conducted.f 

The  Spanish  authority  and  laws  were  now  duly  enforced, 
without  further  arrests  or  executions,  and  confidence  began 
slowly  to  be  established  in  the  minds  of  the  French  population. 
Spanish  emigrants  soon  began  to  arrive  in  great  numbers  from 
Spain,  the  Indies,  and  the  American  provinces,  by  which  the 
population  of  the  city  and  province  was  augmented  so  rapidly 
as  to  produce  a  general  and  alarming  scarcity  of  provisions. 
Flour  in  the  city  rose  in  value  to  twenty  dollars  per  barrel,! 
and  other  provisions  in  proportion. 

[A.D.  1770.]  During  the  short  period  of  O'Reilly's  power, 
although  exercised  with  great  rigor  and  severity,  he  introduced 
many  useful  regulations,  and  enacted  many  salutary  laws, 
which  he  caused  to  be  published  for  the  use  of  the  province. 
Numerous  grants  of  land  were  made  and  located  on  the  west- 
ern bank  of  the  Mississippi,  and  in  the  prairies  west  of  the  At- 
chafalaya  and  Teche. 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  12,  13.  t  Idem,  p.  14,  l!i. 

t  At  this  time,  during  the  extreme  scarcity  of  breadstaifg,  Oliver  Pollock,  from  Balti- 
more, arrived  with  a  cargo  of  flour,  which  he  offered  to  General  O'Reilly  upon  his  o'vn 
terms,  for  the  use  of  the  troops  and  city.  But  O'Reilly  declining  to  receive  it  on  these 
terms,  Pollock  sold  it  to  him  at  fifteen  dollars  per  barrel.  O'Reilly  was  so  pleased  at 
the  purchMe,  that  he  granted  to  Pollock  the  free  trade  of  Louisiana  as  long  as  he 
lived,  and  promised  to  report  his  generosity  to  the  king.  The  advantages  of  this  trade 
were  enjoyed  by  Pollock  for  several  years  afterward,  and  placed  him  in  a  situation,  sub- 
sequently, to  act  for  the  United  States  as  "  agent"  for  supplying  the  western  posts  on 
the  Ohio  and  Upper  Mississippi. — See  book  iii.,  chap,  iv.,  of  this  work.  Also,  Mar- 
tiit'ii  Liuisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  13. 


454 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book  IV. 


The  "  black  code,"  code  noir,  formerly  given  by  Louis  XV., 
was  re-enacted  for  the  protection  and  government  of  the  slaves. 
Foreigners  were  prohibited  from  passing  through  the  domain 
without  a  passport  from  the  governor,  and  the  people  were  pre- 
vented from  trading  with  individuals  descending  the  river  from 
the  United  States.  Many  of  the  local  regulations  and  ordi- 
nances were  particularly  oppressive  to  the  French,  but  they 
had  permission  to  retire  from  the  province  quietly  whenever 
they  saw  proper.  Many,  of  course,  availed  themselves  of  this 
privilege,  and  abandoned  a  country  where  their  situation  was 
rendered  more  precarious,  from  a  remaining  suspicion  of  their 
disaffection  to  the  Spanish  authority,  entertained  by  a  governor 
who  had  clearly  shown  himself  despotic,  arbitrary,  and  treach- 
erous. They  preferred  the  alternative  of  departing  to  the  Isl- 
and of  St.  Dcmingo,  the  nearest  French  colony,  where  they 
could  enjoy  personal  safety  among  their  own  countrymen,  and 
free  from  suspicion. 

But  when  the  tyrant  found  that  he  was  effectually  driving 
from  the  province  many  valuable  citizens,  merchants,  mechan- 
ics, and  planters,  he  determined  to  put  a  check  to  this  kind  of 
emigration  by  refusing  to  issue  passports.  Hence  many  were 
compelled  to  remain  and  abide  the  concealed  vengeance  of  a 
vindictive  governor.  By  such  means  he  suppressed  the  mani- 
festation of  a  desire  to  emigrate,  but  did  not  eradicate  it  from 
the  discontented  mind.* 

The  province  was,  however,  soon  relieved  from  further 
anxiety,  and  the  fear  of  O'Reilly's  vengeance.  At  the  end  of 
one  year  he  was  superseded  in  the  command  of  the  province 
by  Don  Antonio  Maria  Bucarelly  as  "  Captain-general  of  Loui- 
siana." O'Reilly  returned  to  Spain  under  the  severe  displeas- 
ure of  his  sovereign,  Charles  III.,  who  forbade  his  appearance 
at  court. 

The  subsequent  government  of  Spain  in  Louisiana  was  gen- 
erally mild  and  paternal,  partly  military  and  partly  civil.  The 
governor  exercised  both  civil  and  military  authority.  The 
captain-general  was  commander  of  all  the  military  posts  and 
of  the  troops  of  the  province.  The  intendant  superintended 
the  administration  of  the  revenue  laws,  and  not  unfrequently 

*  An  excellent  synopsis  of  the  civil  and  military  polity  of  Spain  in  Louisiana  may  be 
seen  in  Stoddart's  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  from  p.  270  to  290,  to  .^'hich  the  reader  is  re- 
ferred for  a  more  full  account  of  the  minutiss  of  the  Spanish  provincial  govenimeut. 


A,D.  1775.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


455 


gov. 


this  duty  was  exercised  by  the  governor  himself.  The 
ernor  exercised  judicial  powers  in  such  civil  cases  as  might  be 
brought  before  him.  The  affairs  of  the  Church  were  commit- 
ted to  the  charge  of  the  vicar-general.  In  each  parish  there 
was  a  military  officer,  or  commandant,  whose  duty  was  to  at- 
tend to  the  police  of  the  parish,  and  to  preserve  the  peace.  He 
also  exercised  most  of  the  duties  which  are  usually  assigned  to 
magistrates  and  notaries  public  in  the  United  States,  and  had 
jurisdiction  in  all  civil  cases  where  the  matter  in  dispute  did 
not  exceed  twenty  dollars  in  value. 

The  Captain-general  of  Cuba,  under  the  king,  exercised  a 
general  supervision  of  the  province  as  intermediate  between 
the  crown  and  the  king's  officers  in  Louisiana. 

[A.D.  1771.]  The  commerce  of  Louisiana,  under  the  re- 
strictions imposed  by  O'Reilly,  continued  to  languish  for  two 
years,  but  it  soon  afterward  began  to  revive  under  the  judicious 
policy  of  Unzaga,  who  soon  rescinded  most  of  those  restric- 
tions which  were  in  force  during  the  first  months  of  his  admin- 
istration.* He  also  encouraged  agricultural  industry  and  en- 
terprise, by  such  means  as  were  within  his  power,  and  thereby 
gave  an  impulse  to  agricultural  enterprise,  which  had  been  al- 
most entirely  suppressed  under  his  predecessor.  Notwith- 
standing the  restrictions  of  the  royal  schedule  in  1766,  he 
wisely  permitted  the  planters  to  supply  themselves  with  slaves 
for  the  cultivation  of  their  estates  from  the  British  traders  in 
West  Florida. 

[A.D.  1773.]  After  three  years  the  province  began  to  as- 
sume a  state  of  general  prosperity,  and,  under  the  judicious 
moderation  and  wise  administration  of  Unzaga,  the  French 
population  had  gradually  become  reconciled  to  the  Spanish  do- 
minion and  to  the  Spanish  authorities.  Emigrants  from  Spain 
and  her  provinces  also  continued  to  flock  to  Louisiana  under 
the  mild  and  pacific  rule  of  Unzaga,  who  soon  afterward  re- 
ceived from  the  king  the  commission  of  brigadier-general,  and 
"  Intendant  of  Louisiana,"  as  a  special  mark  of  the  approba- 
tion and  confidence  of  his  royal  master,  in  addition  to  his  office 
of  governor  of  the  province.f 

[A.D.  1775.]  During  Unzaga's  administration,  the  popula- 
tion on  the  Lower  Mississippi,  as  well  as  in  Upper  Louisiana, 
had  steadily  increased,  and  before  the  close  of  the  year  1775 


Martin's  Looiiitna,  vol.  ii.,  p.  S5,  86. 


t  Idem,  p.  31,  34. 


456 


HI8TOKY    OF    THE 


[book  IV 


the  town  of  St.  Louis  had  augmented  its  population  to  eight 
hundred  persons.  The  number  of  houses  was  one  hundred  and 
twenty,  including  many  good  stone  buildings.  The  people  of 
St.  Louis  possessed  large  numbers  of  domestic  stock,  and  es- 
pecially horses  and  horned  cattle,  which  ranged  at  large  upon 
the  fertile  prairies  for  miles  in  the  vicinity.  St.  Genevieve, 
at  the  same  time,  contained  a  population  of  four  hundred  and 
sixty  persons,  and  about  one  hundred  houses  of  every  descrip- 
tion.* 

[A.D.  177G.]  The  mild  and  benevolent  rule  of  IJnzaga  con- 
tinued in  Louisiana  until  the  close  of  the  year  1770,  when,  hav- 
ing received  from  the  king  the  appointment  of  Captain-general 
of  Caraccas,  he  was  succeeded  as  Governor  of  Louisiana  by 
Dun  Bernard  de  Galvez,  a  colonel  in  the  "  Regiment  of  Loui- 
siana," and  connected  with  the  ruling  nobles  of  Spain  and  the 
provinces.  He  entered  upon  the  exercise  of  his  office  on  the  first 
day  of  January,  1777,  at  a  time  when  England  was  waging  a 
bloody  and  cruel  war  against  her  American  provinces.  As  a 
Spaniard,  he  had  no  predilection  for  the  English  monarchy, 
and  his  sympathies  were  enlisted  for  the  colonies,  which  were 
struggling  against  the  power  and  tyranny  of  the  British  crown. 

The  province  of  Louisiana  at  this  time  was  prosperous,  and 
carried  on  quite  an  active  trade  with  the  French  and  Spanish 
colonies  in  the  West  Indies,  to  promote  which,  during  the  past 
year,  the  King  of  Spain  had  granted  permission  for  French 
vessels  from  the  West  Indies  to  trade  direct  with  the  city  of 
New  Orleans,  and,  under  certain  restrictions,  with  the  plant- 
ers on  the  coast  above  the  city.  The  cultivation  of  tobacco, 
as  a  valuable  staple  product,  was  encouraged  by  the  royal  gov- 
ernment, which  instructed  the  liberal  purchase  of  crops  to  be 
received  into  the  royal  warehouses.! 

[A.D.  1777.]  The  same  year  witnessed  the  first  regular 
commercial  intercourse  between  the  ports  of  the  United  States 
and  the  city  of  New  Orleans.  The  pioneer  in  this  commerce 
was  Oliver  Pollock,  a  citizen  of  Baltimore,  who  had  been  resid- 
ing in  the  city  of  New  Orleans  since  the  close  of  O'Reilly's  ad- 
ministration. J  During  the  year  1777  he  received  the  appoint- 
ment of  United  States  agent  in  New  Orleans  for  the  purchase 
and  supply  of  military  stores,  ammunition,  and  munitions  of 


*  Imlay's  America,  p.  501,  502,  ed.  of  1797, 
t  Martin's  LoaUioiia,  vol.  ii.,  p.  40. 


I  Idem,  p.  12  aud  40. 


A.D.  1779.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


457 


imerce 
resid- 
r's  ad- 
point- 
rchase 
3ns  of 

40. 


war  for  tlie  use  of  the  American  posts  upon  the  Ohio  frontier, 
as  well  as  subsequently  for  those  in  the  Illinois  country.  Be- 
ing an  active  and  energetic  man  of  business,  and  an  enterpris- 
ing merchant  of  New  Orleans,  he  soon  received  the  favorable 
attention  of  Governor  Galvez,  which  greatly  facilitated  his  com- 
mercial ojjerations  in  behalf  of  the  Federal  government,  and 
enabled  him  to  render  important  services  to  the  cause  of  the 
American  Revolution. 

[A.D.  1770.]  A  few  months  elapsed,  when  France  and 
Spain  were  involved  in  the  war  with  Great  Britain  in  favor  of 
the  American  colonies.  England,  having  taken  offense  at  the 
action  of  the  French  court  in  relation  to  the  revolted  provinces, 
by  a  recognition  of  their  independence,  declared  war  against 
France  herself  Subsequently,  the  King  of  Spain,  in  order  to 
bring  about  a  general  pacification,  proposed,  through  his  min- 
ister in  London,  to  the  English  cabinet,  a  general  amnesty  of 
peace,  to  be  settled  for  a  term  of  years,  by  a  conference  of 
ministers  from  the  belligerent  powers,  to  be  convened  at  Mad- 
rid, and  that  those  of  the  United  States  should  be  admitted  upon 
an  equality  with  others.  But  England  could  not  brook  the  in- 
dignity, and,  in  very  unequivocal  language,  and  in  no  very 
courteous  manner,  rejected  the  Spanish  minister's  proposition. 
The  latter,  offended  at  the  reception  of  his  Catholic  majesty's 
good  offices  to  put  a  close  to  the  war,  without  ceremony  de- 
parted from  London  and  returned  to  Madrid.  With  impru- 
dent haste  the  English  cabinet  issued  letters  of  marque  and  re- 
prisal against  the  Spanish  commerce,  and  the  King  of  Spain 
was  soon  compelled  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  existing  war. 
On  the  8th  of  May,  1779,  his  Catholic  majesty  formally  declar- 
ed war  against  Great  Britain,  and  took  measures  to  commence 
active  operations  against  the  common  enemy.* 

A  portion  of  the  loyal  British  provinces  immediately  contig- 
uous to  Louisiana  had  already  commenced  hostilities  against 
the  American  authorities,  which  placed  them  in  the  attitude  of 
enemies  to  Spain  and  the  United  States,  and  as  such  render- 
ed the  province  of  West  Florida  a  legitimate  object  of  con- 
quest. 

From  the  first  occupancy  of  Louisiana  by  the  Spanish  au- 
thorities, much  annoyance  had  been  experienced  from  the  ad- 
vance of  the  British  settlements  and  posts  on  the  Lower  Mis- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  47. 


■*■ 


458 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[nOOK  IV. 


sissippi.  The  subjects  of  Great  Britain,  entering  the  river  by 
way  of  the  Amite  and  Iberville,  introduced  into  the  Spanish 
settlements  near  the  Mississippi,  as  well  as  into  those  which 
were  more  remote,  contraband  goods  and  articles  of  merchan- 
dise, which  entirely  evaded  the  revenue  laws  of  Spain,  and 
thus  created  for  themselves  an  entire  monopoly  of  the  trade 
with  the  province,  through  their  trading-posts  established  upon 
the  east  bank  of  the  river,  as  high  as  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo. 
Such  had  been  the  annoyance  of  the  Spanish  authorities,  that 
any  event  which  might  remove  a  troublesome  neighbor  and 
restore  the  eastern  bank  of  the  river  to  the  Spanish  dominion 
could  not  be  otherwise  than  hailed  with  satisfaction. 

The  court  of  Spain  had  viewed  witji  concealed  satisfaction 
the  revolt  of  the  English  provinces  along  the  Atlantic  coast, 
and  secretly  desired  to  see  them  successful  in  their  resistance 
to  British  tyranny  and  power.  Hence  the  Spanish  authorities 
of  Louisiana  had  offered  no  impediment  to  the  agents  of  the 
United  States  in  their  efforts  to  procure  military  supplies  in 
New  Orleans  for  the  western  posts  on  the  Ohio. 

The  governor  and  captain-general  of  Louisiana  was  early 
notified  of  the  war,  and  was  instructed  to  proceed  vigorously 
against  the  British  posts  in  West  Florida.  After  some  oppo- 
sition and  consequent  delay  from  the  Cabaldo,  Galvez  succeeded 
in  organizing  about  fourteen  hundred  men  ready  to  take  the 
field.  With  these  he  marched  against  the  English  Fort  Bute, 
on  the  north  side  of  the  Manchac,  and  carried  it  by  assault  on 
the  7th  of  September.*  From  this  point,  having  received  a 
re-enforcement  of  six  hundred  militia,  he  marched  to  Baton 
Rouge,  the  principal  British  post  on  the  river.  The  post  at 
this  place  was  well  supplied  with  arms,  military  stores,  and 
provisions,  and  was  garrisoned  by  four  hundred  regular  troops 
and  one  hundred  militia.  After  a  cannonade  of  two  hours  and 
a  half,  the  commandant.  Colonel  Dickinson,  on  the  21st  of  Sep- 
tember, surrendered  not  only  this  post,  but  also  Fort  Panmure, 
at  Natchez ;  also,  a  fort  on  the  Amit^,  and  one  small  post  on 
Thompson's  Creek,  together  with  all  this  portion  of  West  Flor- 
ida.f  Thus  all  that  part  of  West  Florida,  now  comprising  the 
parishes  of  Baton  Rouge  and  Feliciana,  came  under  the  domin- 
ion of  Spain  as  a  part  of  Louisiana,  which  had  been  severed  in 
1763. 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  48,  49. 


t  Idem,  p.  49. 


A.D.  1780.] 


VAM.KY    OF    THE    MIt«8I8SIPri. 


450 


[A.D.  1780.]  For  his  soldier-like  conduct  at  the  Manchac 
and  at  Baton  Rouge,  and  for  the  successes  which  attended  his 
movements,  the  King  of  Spain  conferred  upon  Don  Galvez  the 
commission  of  brigadier-general  of  the  royal  forces  of  Louisi- 
ana, with  orders  to  prosecute  the  further  reduction  of  the  Brit- 
ish power  in  West  Florida.  Having  made  preparati()n  during 
the  winter,  and  having  received  re-enforcements  from  Havana, 
he  was  ready  in  January  to  sail  for  the  reduction  of  Fort  Char- 
lotte, at  Mobile.  On  the  voyage  to  Mobile  Bay,  he  narrowly 
escaped  utter  destruction  of  his  fleet  by  a  violent  gale  in  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico ;  and  after  tedious  delays,  he  succeeded  in  mak- 
ing a  landing  of  his  troops,  artillery,  and  military  stores  on  the 
east  bank  of  the  river,  near  the  British  fort.  Six  strong  bat- 
teries were  erected,  from  which  the  fort  could  be  bombarded 
with  great  effect.  The  batteries  opened  upon  the  fort,  and  a 
practicable  breach  having  been  made,  the  commandant  capitu- 
lated on  the  14th  of  March,  without  further  resistance.  The 
reduction  of  this  post  being  effected,  Galvez  returned  to  New 
Orleans  to  concert  measures  for  the  reduction  of  Pensacola, 
the  capital  of  West  Florida,  which  was  defended  by  the  stron- 
gest fortress  in  the  province.  The  remainder  of  the  year  was 
spent,  during  a  protracted  siege,  in  fruitless  attempts  to  reduce 
the  place. 

At  length  Galvez,  finding  all  his  efforts  ineffectual  for  the  re- 
duction of  the  post,  suspended  further  operations  until  he  should 
receive  re-enforcements,  together  with  a  train  of  heavy  batter- 
ing cannon  and  a  naval  force,  to  aid  in  the  final  reduction  of 
this  important  point. 

In  the  mean  time,  while  the  Spanish  arms  had  been  triumph- 
ant on  the  Lower  Mississippi  and  in  West  Florida,  the  set- 
tlements of  Upper  Louisiana,  and  the  town  of  St.  Louis,  had 
been  exposed  to  an  invasion,  concerted  and  put  in  motion  at 
the  British  post  of  Mackinaw,  on  the  northwestern  lakes  of 
Canada. 

The  British  commandant  at  Michillimackinac,  hearing  of  the 
disasters  of  the  British  arms  in  Florida,  conceived  the  idea  of 
leading  an  expedition  upon  his  own  responsibility  against  the 
Spanish  settlements  of  St.  Louis.  Early  in  the  spring  he  had 
assembled  one  hundred  and  forty  regular  British  troops  and 
Canadian  Frenchmen,  and  fourteen  hundred  Indian  warriors 
for  the  campaign.     From  the  southern  extremity  of  Lake  Mich- 


4G0 


IIISTltliy    OF    THE 


[nooK  IV. 


igan  this  host  of  savages,  uiuler  British  leaders,  inarched  across 
to  the  Mississippi,  and  encamped  within  a  few  miles  of  St. 
Louis.  The  town  had  been  fortified  for  temporary  <lefense, 
and  the  hostile  host  made  a  regular  Indian  investment  of  the 
place.  Skirmishes  and  desultory  attacks  continued  for  sever- 
al days,  during  which  many  were  killed,  and  others  were  taken 
captive  hy  the  Indians.  Much  of  the  stock  of  cattle  and  hor- 
ses belonging  to  the  place  was  killed  or  carried  off. 

The  people  at  length,  believing  a  general  attack  was  con- 
templated, and  having  lost  confidence  in  their  commandant's 
courage,  or  in  his  preparations  for  defense,  sent  a  special  re- 
(juest  to  Colonel  Clark,  then  commanding  at  Kaskaskia,  to  come 
to  their  aid  with  such  force  as  he  could  assemble.  Colonel 
Clark  immediately  made  preparation  to  march  to  their  relief. 
Having  assembled  nearly  five  hundred  men  under  his  com- 
mand, he  marched  to  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  a  short  dis- 
tance below  the  town  of  St.  Louis.  Here  he  remained  en- 
camped for  further  observations.  On  the  0th  of  May  the  grand 
Indian  attack  was  made,  when  Colonel  Clark,  crossing  the  riv- 
er, marched  up  to  the  town  to  take  part  in  the  engagement. 
The  sight  of  the  Americans,  or  the  •'  Long-knives,"  as  they  were 
called,  under  the  command  of  the  well-known  Colonel  (Mark, 
caused  the  savages  to  abandon  the  attack  and  seek  safety  in 
flight.  They  refused  to  participate  in  any  further  hostilities, 
and  reproached  the  British  commandant  with  duplicity  in  hav- 
ing assured  them  that  he  would  march  them  to  fight  the  Span- 
iards only,  whereas  now  they  were  brought  against  the  Span- 
iards and  the  Americans.  They  soon  afterward  abandt)ned 
the  British  standard,  and  returned  to  their  towns,  near  Lakes 
Superior  and  Michigan. 

During  the  siege,  which  continued  about  a  week,  nearly 
sixty  persons  were  killed  in  the  town  and  vicinity,  and  about 
thirty  persons  had  been  captured  by  the  Indians.  The  timely 
arrival  of  Colonel  Clark  rescued  these  and  twenty  other  pris- 
oners, which  they  had  taken  in  their  advance.  Such  was  the 
invasion  of  Upper  Louisiana  in  1780  from  Mackinaw.* 

*  The  attack  on  St.  Louis  waa  iu  May,  1780,  but  Judge  Hall  erroneously  makes  it 
in  1778,  at  which  time  Colonel  Clark  had  not  been  on  the  Upper  Mississippi. 

The  people  of  St.  Louis,  having  heard  that  this  expedition  from  Michillimackiiiac 
was  iu  preparation  in  the  fall  of  1779,  had  fortified  the  town  with  a  nide  stm-kadc  six 
feet  high,  made  by  two  rows  of  upright  palisades  a  few  feet  apart,  filK'd  in  with 
earth.    The  outline  of  the  stockade  described  a  semicircle  around  the  place,  resting  iti 


A.D.   1781.] 


VAl-LKY    OP    THE    MIsaiSSIPPt. 


401 


nearly 
about 

timely 
jr  pris- 
mas the 

makes  it 

iiuarkliiBC 
ckadc  six 
il  in  with 
resting  ita 


[A.D.  1781.]  During;  the  winter  General  Galvez  had  been 
indefatigable  in  his  preparations  for  the  eflectual  reduction  of 
Pensacola.  He  had  repaired  to  Havana  for  the  reiiuisite  re- 
enforcements  and  munitions  of  war,  together  with  a  strong 
naval  ft)rce.  At  length,  on  the  28th  of  February,  1781,  he  set 
sail  from  the  West  Indies  for  the  coast  of  Florida,  to  co-operate 
with  the  forces  from  Louisiana.  The  armament  from  Havana 
comprised  one  man-of-war,  two  frigates,  and  a  number  of 
transports,  and  otX  the  coast  of  Louisiana  he  was  joined  by  the 
land  and  naval  forces  from  New  Orleans.  On  the  9th  of  March 
the  whole  armament  appeared  before  the  port  of  Pensacola, 
when  the  f(trt  opened  a  heavy  fire  upon  such  vessels  as  ven- 
tured within  the  range  of  its  guns. 

A  regular  investment  commenced,  and  the  works  progressed 
with  great  activity  until  the  first  of  April,  when  several  bat- 
teries were  ready  to  open  upon  the  fort.  The  cannonade  com- 
menced with  great  vivacity,  and  with  decided  effect ;  but  the 
garrison  made  a  determined  resistance,  and  all  the  efforts  of 
the  Spanish  forces  were  insufficient  to  compel  a  surrender,  until 
the  9th  of  May,  when  the  lodgment  of  a  bomb-shell  exploded 
the  magazine,  and  rendered  all  further  resistance  in  vain.  The 
commander  then  proposed  to  capitulate.  Terms  of  capitula- 
tion were  arranged  and  signed  on  the  same  day.* 

By  the  articles  of  capitulation,  the  English  commander  sur- 
rendered to  his  Catholic  majesty  the  fortress  and  port  of  Pensa- 
cola, together  with  the  garrison  of  eight  hundred  men,  as  pris- 
oners of  war,  and  the  whole  of  the  dependence  of  West  Flor- 
ida. The  whole  of  East  and  West  Florida  was  confirmed  to 
Spain  by  the  subsequent  treaty  of  1783.  Thus  terminated  the 
last  vestige  of  British  power  upon  the  Lower  Mississippi,  after 
an  occupancy  of  nearly  nineteen  years.f 

During  the  protracted  investment  of  Pensacola,  a  partial  re- 
volt of  the  English  colonists  in  the  Natchez  District  had  well- 
two  extremities  upon  the  river,  above  and  below  the  town,  flanked  by  one  small  fort 
at  each  extremity.  Three  gates  pave  opening  to  the  country  in  the  rear,  each  defend- 
ed by  a  piece  of  ordnance  kept  continually  well  charged.  When  the  attack  was  first 
made,  the  people,  having  supposed  it  abandoned,  were  not  fully  prepared  to  meet  it  i 
hence  the  number  of  persons  killed  and  captured.  The  invading  host  was  led  on  by 
English  and  Canadians,  and  consisted  chiefly  of  Ojibeways,  Menomonics,  Winnebagocs. 
Sioux,  and  Sauke. — See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  53  j  Life  of  Black  Hawk,  Extract  in  "  West- 
em  Pilot,"  p.  138-1 '2;  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  79,  80;  and  Hall's  Sketches,  vol.  i.,  p. 
Ill,  112. 
^  See  book  iii.,  chap,  iv.,  of  this  work.  t  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  61. 


402 


IIiaTORY    or   THE 


[nooK  IV. 


nigh  brought  upon  them  the  vengeance  of  their  conquerors,  the 
Spaniards  of  Louisiana. 

These  men  having  learned  by  rumor  that  a  powerful  British 
armanient  was  off  the  coast  of  Florida  for  the  recovery  of  his 
majesty's  posts  and  possessions  on  the  Lower  Mississippi,  and 
believing  the  cause  of  England  already  triumphant  in  Florida, 
determined  to  evince  their  zeal  for  his  Britannic  majesty's  ser- 
vice by  overpowering  the  Spanish  garrison  in  Fort  Panmure, 
and  restoring  the  British  flag  over  that  portion  of  the  province. 
Accordingly,  having  organized  themselves  under  military  ofli- 
cers,  and  having  secured  the  co-operation  of  a  large  number 
of  Choctft  warriors,  they  repaired,  on  the  22d  of  April,  to  an 
eminence  above  the  town  of  Natchez,  and  in  full  view  of  Fort 
Panmure,  where  they  raised  the  British  flag,  and  commenced 
their  operations  for  the  capture  of  the  Spanish  post. 

During  the  night  they  approached  the  fort,  and  planted  their 
cannon  so  as  to  bear  upon  the  works ;  but  a  heavy  fire  from 
the  artillery  of  the  fort  next  morning  soon  compelled  them  to 
retire.  During  the  following  day  and  night,  a  moderate  can- 
nonade was  continued  between  the  garrison  and  their  be- 
siegers. 

On  the  29th  of  April,  the  commandant  sent  a  flag  from  the 
fort  to  the  insurgents,  representing  to  them  the  danger  to  which 
they  exposed  themselves  by  an  open  rebellion  against  their  law- 
ful sovereign,  at  the  same  time  tendering  to  them  the  royal 
clemency,  provided  they  would  deliver  up  their  leaders  and 
disperse.     They  promised  an  answer  next  day. 

Next  day  the  garrison  was  induced  to  believe  that  the  fort 
had  been  undermined  from  the  deep  ravine  contiguous,  with  a 
powerful  mine,  the  train  of  which  was  to  be  ignited  on  the  fol- 
lowing day ;  whereupon  the  commandant,  seeing  his  supply 
of  provisions  and  ammunition  was  nearly  exhausted,  and  his 
men  worn  down  with  fatigue  and  watching,  proposed  to  capit- 
ulate, upon  condition  that  he  should  be  permitted  peaceably  to 
retire  from  the  fort,  and  march  his  troops  without  molestation 
to  Baton  Rouge.  These  terms  were  accepted  by  the  insurgents, 
and  the  fort  was  surrendered  to  them. 

A  few  days  brought  intelligence  that  the  fleet  which  had  ar- 
rived was  a  Spanish  re-enforcement  for  Galvez,  and  that  Pen- 
sacola  had  fallen  into  his  hands  by  the  fate  of  war. 

This  brought  consternation  to  the  insurgents,  who  deemed  it 


A.D.  1781.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MianiSHirPL 


403 


expedient  to  provi<le  for  their  own  safety  before  they  were  with- 
in reucli  of  Spanish  vengeance.  Among  the  insurgents  were 
General  Lyman  and  many  of  his  colony,  as  well  as  others 
from  Ogden's  colony,  on  the  Homochitto,  who  immediately 
sought  safety  by  flight  from  the  country.  Mindful  of  the  fate 
of  O'Reilly's  victims  ten  years  before,  they  determined  to  elude 
the  vengeance  of  the  Spanish  governor  by  seeking  the  protec- 
tion of  the  nearest  British  post  in  Georgia,  upon  the  Savannah 
River.  Without  loss  of  time,  they  took  up  their  pilgrimage, 
men,  women,  and  children,  with  such  of  their  effects  as  were 
available,  through  the  Indian  wilderness  to  the  western  parts 
of  Georgia,  through  the  Creek  nation,  of  whose  friendship  they 
had  no  assurance.  After  a  long  and  distressing  journey  of  one 
hundred  and  thirty  days,  they  reached  the  settlements  on  the 
Savannah,  exhausted  with  fatigue,  exposure,  and  privations.* 

Others  took  refuge  in  the  Indian  nation,  some  of  whom  sub- 
sequently fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Spanish  authorities,  and 
were  treated  as  rebels  against  the  king's  government. 

On  the  29th  of  July,  Don  Carlos  de  Grandprc,  "lieutenant- 
colonel  in  the  regiment  of  Louisiana,"  entered  upon  his  duties 
as  "  civil  and  military  commandant  of  the  post  and  district  of 
Natchez,"  when  measures  were  immediately  instituted  for  the 
punishment  of  such  of  the  late  insurgents  as  were  within  reach 
of  the  Spanish  authorities.  Arrests,  seizures,  and  confiscations 
commenced. f  During  the  months  of  September  and  October, 
the  goods,  chattels,  effects,  and  dues  of  every  kind,  pertaining 
to  more  than  twenty  "  fugitive  rebels,"  had  been  seized  for  con- 
fiscation. Some  of  these  were  men  of  wealth,  especially  George 
Rappleje  and  Jacob  Blomart.     Before  the  middle  of  November, 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  63-65. 

t  The  MS.  Spanish  records  at  Natchez  exliibit  a  list  of  the  "  fagitivo  rebels,"  and  the 
proceedings  against  such  as  were  arrested.  Those  who  had  fled  the  country  were 
Philip  Alston,  John  Ogg,  Cliristian  Bingamen^  Caleb  Hansbrough,  Thaddeus  Lyman, 
John  Watkins,  William  Case,  John  Turner,  Thomas  James,  Philip  Mulkey,  Ebenezer 
Gosset,  Thompson  Lyman,  Nathaniel  Johnson. 

The  following  were  "  leaders  of  the  rebellion,"  who  were  prisoners  in  New  Orleans 
on  the  16th  of  November,  awaiting  their  trials,  viz. : 

1.  Jolm  Alston,  who  was  arrested  in  the  Indian  nation. 

2.  Jacob  Blomart,  "  chief  of  the  rebels." 

3.  John  Smith,  "  lieutenant  of  rebels."  4 

4.  Jacob  Winfrey,  "  captain  of  rebels." 

5.  William  Eason. 

6.  Parker  Caradine. 

7.  George  Rappleje. 

— See  MS.  Spanish  records  at  Natchez,  in  Probate  Court,  book  A. 


404 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


seven  of  the  leaders  were  prisoners  in  close  conHnement  in 
New  Orleans,  ••  charged  with  the  crime  of  attempting  to  pro- 
mote a  general  n^bellion"  against  his  Catholic  majesty's  gov- 
ernment in  the  "  District  of  Natchez."  Seven  were  convicted 
and  sentenced  to  death,  but  were  subsequently  reprieved  by 
the  governor-general.  Thus  terminated  the  first  revolt  of  the 
Anglo- Aniericans  in  Florida.  The  second,  nearly  thirty  years 
afterward,  was  more  fortunate. 

[A.D.  1782.]  Meantime,  the  plenipotentiaries  of  the  bellig- 
erent powers  were  engaged  at  Paris  in  negotiations  for  a  gen- 
eral peace  in  Europe  and  America.  On  the  2()th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1782,  the  provisional  treaty  of  peace  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain  was  executed.  This  treaty  establish- 
ed the  southern  limit  of  the  United  States  to  be  the  31st  par- 
allel of  north  latitude,  from  the  Mississippi  eastward  to  the  St. 
Mary's  River  of  East  Florida.* 

[A.D.  1783.]  On  the  20th  day  of  January,  1783,  the  pre- 
liminary articles  of  peace  between  Great  Britain  on  the  one 
side,  and  France  and  Spain  on  the  other,  were  signed  by  their 
respective  plenipotentiaries  at  Paris,  and  hostilities  in  Louisi- 
ana and  Florida  ceased.  In  September  following,  the  defini- 
tive articles  of  peace  were  signed  by  the  same  parties  and  the 
United  States  respectively,  for  the  final  ratification  of  their  re- 
spective governments. 

By  this  treaty  Great  Britain  confirmed  to  Spain  the  whole 
of  the  Floridas  south  of  the  31st  degree  of  latitude,  reserving 
the  right  that  all  British  subjects  then  resident  in  Florida  should 
be  allowed  the  period  of  eighteen  months  from  the  ratification 
of  the  treaty  to  sell  their  property  and  close  their  business, 
provided  they  desired  to  retire  from  the  province.f 

Meantime,  the  provinces  of  Louisiana  and  the  Floridas,  un- 
der the  Spanish  dominion,  returned  to  a  state  of  peace  and  re- 
pose, when  military  parade  and  martial  display  gave  place  tc* 
domestic  cares,  and  the  excitement  of  trade,  agriculture,  and 
individual  enterprise.  Emigration  from  the  Spanish  provinces 
of  Mexico  and  the  West  Indies  continued  to  augment  the  pop- 
ulation as  well  as  the  commerce  of  the  country,  and  enter- 
prising emigrants  from  the  United  States  began  to  arrive  also. 

*  See  Walker's  Reports  of  Supreme  Court  of  Mississippi,  p.  6'3,  note, 
t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  72. 


A.D.   HNI.] 


VALLKY  OF  TIIK  MlririlriHII'i't 


405 


ClIAPTKIl  II. 


LOUISIANA    UNDKK    THE    MPANHII   IIOMIMOV,  FUOM  TIIK    TUKATY   OP 
n«8  TO  THE   yilAR   17l)«.— A.U.   17H3  TO   1700. 

Arfcufne.nl—Vroa\ioroyia  ('olidifinn  of  Louiiiinim  afkiir  tlio  Wnr.— Populiition  in  1785. — 
Ualvez  rcfiri's  Iroin  Lou'iMmna. — Ddii  Miro  Ruccci'iU  to  tin;  |iriiviNiiiniil  Onvrniniuiit. 
— JuiIlm)  of  111  •iili.'uno. — ('iitliulic  ('liurcli  iti  JiiiiiiHiiinii. —  liiiiuiiiitioii  L-xclutlt'd- — Aca- 
dian Kniignuitfi. — IiiiliiiL'i'nou  to  llritiNli  MiilijiM'ts  in  W'l'nt  Fidritlu.— Irinii  CatlMilin 
I'riusti  for  tliu  Natchez  l)igtri''t.— Min)  niiccci'iIi  na  Oovi-rnor  j,'i'MtTHl  of  LouiHiana  ill 
1780. — Arrival  of  tlio  (^)lnmi8si(>u^■l•^^  of  (Icors'in. — Oi-oririn  Art  croiitiiih'  "  Hourbon 
Comity." — H|)aniNli  DiiticN  ii|m)Ii  Aiiirrirnn  river  Traili-. — Kxtuniiioii  of  Aincriciin  Hot- 
tlomuuts  in  tliu  Oiiio  notion. — Ciainm  of  wcstoni  i'l'opit-  to  fri'o  N'aviKatiou  of  tho 
MiMHiggilipi. — Tliuir  Iinputioncu  uiulor  HpaiiiHli  Iiii|ioiitN. — They  winteuipiote  tho  Iii- 
vnsion  of  LouiHiana  liy  military  Force. — Nature  ami  Kxtcnt  of  Spanisii  Impost*.— 
Relaxation  of  impost  Duties. — Colonel  Wilkinson's  Au'cncy  in  eit'cctiiiK  Ildiixntion 
of  revenue  Laws. — Eniii<ration  of  Americans  to  West  Floridii  and  LouiKiano.— Gen- 
eral Morgan's  Colony. — "New  Madrid"  laid  off. — Uuanloipii  urges  rii<id  Execution 
of  impost  Hcf^ulations. — The  Intendant  riiriiroiisly  enforces  revenue  Laws. — Louisiana 
threatened  with  military  Invasion  from  Ohio  Uei;ion. — (.'oiiflau;rati(m  of  New  Orleans 
in  1788. — Supplies  from  tho  Ohio  admitted  hy  tho  river  Trade.— Colonel  WilHiflson 
engages  in  tho  tobacco  Trade. — Kmiuratiim  fntm  Cumherluml  to  Louisiana  encour- 
aged 1  also  from  tho  Ohio  and  tho  Illiiiois. — Population  of  Louisiana  in  178H, — Emi- 
gration and  Trade  from  tho  Ohio  llegion  in  178'J-U0. — I'oliey  recommended  hy  Na- 
varro to  Upain. — Hpain  jealous  of  the  Extensiim  of  tho  Federal  Jurisdiction. — First 
Schools  and  Academies  in  New  Orleans. — Ttaron  Carondelet  succeeds  Miro  nn  Gov- 
ernor of  Louisiana. — Population  of  New  Orleans  in  1792. — Trade  with  Pliiliidclphia. 
— Political  Uisturbaiiccs  emanating  from  revolutionary  Franco  in  179^. — Genet's  lu- 
trigiioB  and  contemplated  Invasion  of  Loui.tiona  and  Florida  from  the  United  States. 
— Defensive  Movements  of  liaron  Carcuidelet  in  Louisiana. — Measures  of  the  Feder- 
al Government  to  suppress  any  hostile  Movement. — Fort  Barrancas  conmienced  at 
the  fourth  Chickas(i  Bluff. — Counterplot  of  Curondelet  for  effecting  a  Separation  of 
western  People. — Don  Rendon  Intendant  of  Louisiana  and  Florida. — Louisiana  and 
Florida  on  independent  Bishopric. — Carondelet  improves  and  fortifies  the  City  of 
New  Orleans  ;  drains  the  back  Swomps. — A  navigable  Canal. — "  Canal  darondelet" 
completed. — Tho  Indigo  Crop  foils,  and  Cotton,  Sugar,  and  Tobacco  succeed. — Loui- 
siana relieved  from  Apprehension. — Genet's  Agents  arrested ;  himself  recalled. — 
French  Royalists  propose  to  settle  a  Colony  on  the  Washita. — Arrangements  with 
Maison  Rouge. — Alleged  Grant  and  Colony  of  Moison  Rouge. — Subseciuent  Litiga- 
tion.— Adjudication  oiid  final  Rejection  of  the  Claim  os  fraudulent. — Grant  to  Baron  de 
Bastrop. — Americans  excluded  from  Louisiana  and  Florida. — Grant  to  Dubu()uo  on 
Upper  Missis.sippi. — Carondelet's  Intrigues  for  the  Separation  of  Kentucky  from  tlie 
Union. — Gayoso  sent  to  negotiate  with  tho  Kentucky  Conspirators. — Sebastian  de- 
scends to  Natchez  and  New  Orleans. — Negro  Insurrection  discovered  and  suppress- 
ed in  the  Island  of  Point  Coup6e. — Negro  Importotion  interdicted. — Don  Morales 
is  Intendant  for  1796. — Baron  Carondelet's  last  Effort  to  detach  Kentucky  in  179G. — 
Route  to  Upper  Louisiana  through  the  Bayou  Barthclemy  and  St.  Francis  River. 

[A.D.  1784.]  Louisiana,  relieved  from  the  danger  and  pri- 
vations of  active  warfare,  began  to  prosper  as  a  Spanish  prov- 
ince.    Emigration  from  Spain,  the  West  Indies,  and  Mexico 

Vol.  I.~G  g 


460 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


continued  to  augment  the  population  in  all  the  settlements. 
Trade  from  the  interior,  and  commerce  with  foreign  ports  and 
with  the  colonial  dominions  of  Spain,  began  to  develop  the  re- 
sources of  the  country,  and  to  increase  the  strength  and  wealth 
of  the  settlements. 

[A.D.  1785.]  .In  the  spring  of  1785,  according  to  a  census 
by  order  of  Governor  Galvez,  the  population  of  the  whole  prov- 
ince of  Louisiana,  including  the  Natchez  and  Baton  Rouge  dis- 
tricts of  West  Florida,  exclusive  of  Indians,  was  over  thirty- 
three  thousand  souls.  Of  this  amount,  Lower  Louisiana,  ex- 
clusive of  the  Florida  districts,  contained  28,047  persons,  includ- 
ing the  population  of  New  Orleans,  which  was  4980  souls. 
The  West  Florida  districts  contained  3477,  and  Upper  Loui- 
siana 1491  souls.*  Thus  the  province,  in  fifteen  years  from  the 
departure  of  O'Reilly,  had  more  than  doubled  its  population. 

The  greater  portion  of  this  increase  of  population  was  not 
altogether  the  result  of  emigration  from  Spain  and  the  Spanish 
possessions  near  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  but  there  had  been  many 
French  emigrants  from  France  and  the  French  West  India 
Islands,  consequent  upon  certain  privileges  which  had  been 
extended  to  the  French  population  for  several  years  past. 
Among  these  were  the  privilege  of  serving  in  the  "Royal 
Regiment  of  Louisiana,"  and  of  filling  many  of  the  inferior 
civil  offices  in  the  royal  government. 

In  the  course  of  the  summer  following,  Governor  Galvez 
retired  from  the  province  of  Louisiana,  to  enter  upon  the  du- 
ties of  "  Captain-general  of  Cuba,"  to  which  office  he  had  been 
promoted  by  the  king.  The  province  of  Louisiana  and  the 
two  Floridas  were  to  remain  attached  to  his  government,  un- 
der his  lieutenants,  until  a  regular  appointment  should  be  made. 
On  his  departure  from  Louisiana,  he  was  succeeded  in  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  government  by  Don  Estevan  Miro,  ♦'  colo- 
nel of  the  Regiment  of  Louisiana,"  who,  having  been  appointed 
Judge  of  Residence!  for  Galvez,  was  intrusted  with  the  duties 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  77. 

t  This  office  was  peculiar  to  the  Spanish  colonial  government  and  polity.  In  the 
Spanish  colonies,  "Judge  of  Residence"  was  a  wise  and  salutary  provision  for  inres- 
tigating  the  official  conduct  of  any  crown  officer  after  he  had  retired  from  office,  either 
by  removal,  promotion,  or  death.  The  judge  of  residence,  afler  having  made  full  in- 
quiry into  his  official  nets,  made  a  full  and  formal  report  of  the  same  to  the  "  Council 
of  the  Indies"  fcr  the  king.  This  provision  was  intended  to  act  as  a  wise  and  salutary 
check  upon  the  officer,  and  to  insure  a  zealous  and  upright  discharge  of  his  official  du- 
ties.   Knowing  that  his  whole  administration  was  to  be  icrutinized  by  an  officer,  who 


A.D. 


1785.] 


VAIiLEY    OF   THE    MlSSISSim. 


467 


of  governor  until  a  successor  should  be  regularly  appointed  by 
the  king. 

The  Catholic  Church  had  already  been  established  in  Louisi- 
ana, and  its  influence  was  felt  in  every  Spanish  and  French 
settlement ;  but  it  was  not  until  the  year  1785  that  the  successor 
of  St.  Peter  attempted  to  introduce  the  terrors  of  the  Holy  Of- 
fice to  sustain  the  true  faith  against  foreign  heresies. 

Heretofore  the  church  establishment  v.  as  supported  by  funds 
from  the  royal  treasury,  as  a  portion  of  the  government  es- 
tablishment, and  consisted  of  sixteen  curates,  four  assistants, 
and  six  nuns,  under  the  control  of  the  vicar-general  of  Louisi- 
ana.* To  give  greater  effect  to  their  doctrines,  and  to  check 
the  progress  of  heresy,  which  was  apprehended  from  the 
constant  intercourse  with  the  western  people  of  the  United 
States,  it  had  been  deemed  expedient  by  the  head  of  the  Cath- 
olic Church  to  introduce  the  Inquisition  into  Louisiana.  A 
clergyman  of  New  Orleans  was  accordingly  appointed  "  Com- 
missary of  the  Holy  Office"  in  that  city.  But  Governor  Miro, 
having  been  instructed  by  the  king  to  prohibit  the  exercise  of 
all  inquisitorial  functions  in  the  province,  notified  the  commis- 
sary of  his  instructions,  and  forbade  him  to  exercise  the  duties 
of  his  office.  But  the  "reverend  father,"  deeming  it  his  duty 
to  obey  his  spiritual  rather  than  his  temporal  master,  entered 
upon  the  exercise  of  his  commission.  The  governor,  firm  to 
his  duty  and  obedient  to  his  instructions,  determined  to  remove 
him  from  the  province,  and  soon  afterward,  without  any  other 
warning,  the  zealous  ecclesiastic,  while  enjoying  the  slumbers 
of  midnight,  was  suddenly  aroused  by  an  officer  at  the  head  of 
eighteen  grenadiers,  who  conveyed  him  safely  on  board  a  ves- 
sel ready  to  sail  for  Spain,  and  by  daylight  next  morning  he 
was  upon  his  voyage  for  Europe. f  Thu5  was  the  first  and  the 
only  attempt  to  establish  the  Inquisition  in  Louisiana  effectual- 
ly suppressed,  although  no  other  religion  was  tolerated. 

During  the  same  year,  the  province  received  an  accession  to 
its  population  by  the  arrival  of  a  large  number  of  Acadian 
French  families,  introduced  by  the  King  of  France  to  enable 

might  be  strict  in  the  diiclosare  of  his  errors,  his  partiality,  his  avarice,  or  his  injastico, 
it  was  to  be  expected  that  he  would  be  prompted  to  an  upright  discharge  of  his  duties ; 
yet  experience  proves  that,  under  the  Spanish  colonial  government,  this  end  was  not 
always  attained ;  for  the  rapid  accamulation  of  large  fortunes  by  the  Spanish  govern- 
ors was  not  uncommon. — See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  76. 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  80,  81.  t  Idem,  p.  84. 


468 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  IV. 


them  to  join  their  friends,  who,  to  escape  the  EngUsh  dominion, 
had  emigrated  from  their  country  to  Louisiana  in  the  year  1755. 
They  were  located  upon  grants  of  land  made  by  the  Spanish 
authorities,  chiefly  upon  the  Terre  aux  Beufs,  upon  the  Bayou 
Lafourche,  and  in  the  districts  of  Oppelousas  and  Attackapas, 
where  their  descendants  still  reside.  The  whole  number  of 
persons  in  this  importation  was  about  three  thousand  five  hun 
dred  souls,  comprising  the  greater  portion  of  the  remainder  of 
the  original  French  population  of  that  country. 

During  the  same  year,  many  of  the  English  residents  retired 
from  West  Florida,  and  especially  from  the  districts  of  Natch- 
ez and  Baton  Rouge.  Yet,  as  the  period  specified  in  the  treaty 
of  1783  for  their  departui-e  had  elapsed,  and  many  were  still 
unprepared  to  remove,  the  acting  governor,  Miro,  had  granted 
an  extension  of  the  time,  to  enable  them  to  complete  their  ar- 
rangements for  their  final  departure  from  the  province.  The 
King  of  Spain  not  only  approved  the  act  of  the  governor^  but 
signified  his  pleasure  that  such  of  the  British  subjects  as  desired 
to  remain  in  the  country  should  be  entitled  to  all  the  rights  and 
privileges  of  Spanish  subjects  by  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance 
to  the  Spanish  crown,  and  promising  not  to  leave  their  respect- 
ive districts  without  the  permission  of  the  governor. 

[A.D.  1786.]  To  favor  those  who  might  desire  to  remain  in 
the  settlements  of  Natchez  and  Bayou  Sara,  where  there  were 
many  Irish  emigrants,  the  king  directed  that  these  districts 
should  be  supplied  with  Irish  Catholic  priests,  in  order  to  afford 
them  the  privileges  of  the  Catholic  Church.  The  priests  ar- 
rived early  in  the  following  spring,  and  entered  upon  the  du- 
ties of  their  office. 

Early  in  the  summer  of  1786,  Miro  received  his  commission 
from  the  king  as  "  Governor,  civil  and  military,  of  Louisiana 
and  West  Florida,"  and  on  the  2d  of  June  he  issued  his  hando 
de  buen  gobierno,*  setting  forth  his  powers  and  the  general  prin- 
ciples of  his  administration  of  the  government.  Soon  after- 
ward he  published  several  general  regulations  for  the  preser- 
vation of  good  order  and  religious  decorum  in  the  province, 

*  A  hando  de  buen  gobierno  is  a  proclamation  which  the  governor  of  a  Spanish  prov- 
iace  generally  issues  when  first  entering  upon  the  duties  of  his  new  oftice.  Tlie  object 
is  to  make  known  the  principles  which  are  to  regulate  his  future  intercourse  with  the 
people  of  his  province,  and  to  notify  them  of  any  new  ordinances  or  police  regula- 
tions necessary  to  be  enforced.  It  is  literally  an  inaug^al  address. — See  Martin,  vol. 
ii.,  p.  86. 


'^ 


A.D.  1786.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


460 


together  with  sundry  police  regulations  for  the  government  oi" 
the  city  of  New  Orleans.  Among  these  were  ordinances  pro- 
hibiting concubinage,  and  incontinence  as  a  livelihood,  and  pro- 
viding for  the  enforcement  of  all  laws  for  the  suppression  of 
gambling,  duelling,  and  the  wearing  of  dirks,  pistols,  and  con- 
cealed weapons. 

Under  his  wise  administration  the  province  continued  to  en- 
joy a  high  degree  of  prosperity ;  population  and  commerce  in- 
creased, the  river  trade  with  Upper  Louisiana,  and  the  settle- 
ments upon  the  Ohio  and  its  tributaries,  had  become  active,  and 
the  Spanish  dominion  upon  the  Mississippi  appeared  to  be  in- 
creasing continually  in  importance  and  power. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  serious  attention  of  the  Spanish  au- 
thorities was  attracted  to  the  growing  power  of  the  United 
States,  whose  western  settlements  were  coming  in  collision 
with  those  of  Louisiana  and  Florida. 

The  State  of  Georgia  claimed  the  whole  southern  portion 
of  the  United  States,  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Mississippi  River, 
bounded  on  the  south  by  the  thirty-first  parallel  of  latitude. 
Hence  all  the  territory  near  the  Mississippi  on  the  east  side, 
from  Loftus's  Heights  northward  for  several  hundred  miles, 
was  properly  the  territory  of  Georgia.  But  this  whole  region 
was  in  the  possession  of  Spain,  with  a  population  of  nearly  ten 
thousand  souls. 

This  subject  had  not  been  overlooked  by  the  state  govern- 
ment, and  commissioners  on  the  part  of  Georgia  had  arrived  at 
New  Orleans,  during  the  autumn  of  1785,  with  a  demand  for 
the  surrender  of  the  territory,  and  the  establishment  of  the  line 
stipulated  in  the  treaty  of  1783.  The  subject,  however,  had 
been  referred  to  the  Federal  government  for  settlement  and 
amicable  negotiation. 

The  commissioners  notified  the  Spanish  governor  "  that  on 
the  7th  of  February,  1785,  the  Legislature  of  Georgia  had  pass- 
ed an  act,  which  provided  for  the  erection  of  a  county,  by  the 
name  of  •  Bourbon  county,'  near  the  Mississippi,  comprising 
all  the  lands  below  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo,  to  which  the  In- 
dian title  had  been  extinguished ;  and  that  said  act  provided, 
that  whenever  a  land-office  should  be  established  in  said  coun- 
ty, the  persons  occupying  any  of  said  lands,  being  citizens  of 
the  United  States,  or  of  any  friendly  power,  should  have  a 
preference  claim  allowed  and  reserved  to  them  :  provided  they 


470 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


actually  lived  on  and  cultivated  said  lands."  The  subject,  how- 
ever, having  been  referred  to  the  Federal  government  for  ne- 
gotiation, the  act  of  February  7th,  1785,  was  repealed  on  the 
first  day  of  February,  1788.* 

An  active  trade  from  the  population  on  the  Ohio  had  forced 
itself  down  the  Mississippi  to  every  part  of  Louisiana  and  West 
Florida,  and  the  people  of  these  western  settlements  claimed 
the  natural  right  to  the  use  of  the  river  through  the  province 
of  Louisiana ;  although,  in  the  eyes  of  Spain,  they  were  un- 
questionably citizens  of  a  foreign  power.  It  had  early  become 
a  matter  of  great  interest  to  the  Spanish  authorities  to  derive  a 
large  revenue  from  this  trade  by  the  imposition  of  transit  and 
port  duties,  besides  harbor  duties,  and  such  other  expenses  as 
were  unavoidable  in  trade.  A  revenue  officer,  with  a  suitable 
guard  and  a  military  post,  was  established  at  New  Madrid 
and  other  points,  at  which  all  boats  were  required  to  make  land 
and  comply  with  the  revenue  laws,  which  were  enforced  with 
rigor,  even  to  seizure  and  confiscation  of  the  cargo.  * 

The  western  people  were  multiplying  rapidly,  and  their 
surplus  products  adapted  to  the  Louisiana  trade  continued  to 
increase  astonishingly,  and  forced  their  way  down  the  Missis- 
sippi. The  river  duties,  which  by  them  were  deemed  op- 
pressive and  unjust,  were  collected  and  extorted  by  the  officials 
of  Louisiana,  supported  by  military  force.  The  western  people 
believed  these  duties  exorbitant,  and  the  many  restrictions 
which  were  imposed  oppressive  and  unjust  toward  those  who 
possessed  a  natural  right  to  navigate  the  river  free  of  all  such 
impositions.  Under  these  impressions,  it  is  not  strange  that 
many  of  the  sturdy  Republicans  should  resist  these  exactions, 
and  disregard  the  attempts  of  the  Spanish  authorities  to  en- 
force them.  In  this  manner,  it  frequently  happened  that  persons 
were  seized,  fined,  and  imprisoned,  with  other  vexatious  delays 
and  expenses ;  and  sometimes  their  cargoes  were  confiscated 
as  contraband,  or  forfeited,  and  the  owners  or  supercargoes 
were  discharged,  penniless,  to  find  their  way  home.f 

[A.D.  1787.]  Repeated  occurrences  of  this  kind  in  the  lapse 
of  two  years,  from  1785  to  1787,  had  greatly  incensed  the  west- 
ern people,  and  disseminated  a  general  feeling  of  revenge 

*  See  American  State  Papers,  folio  edition,  vol.  i.,  Pablic  Lands,  p.  130.  The  Geor- 
gia act  was  entitled,  "  An  act  for  laying  out  a  district  of  land  situate  on  the  River  Mis- 
sissippi, and  within  the  bounds  of  this  state,  into  a  county,  to  be  called  '  Bourbon.'  '— 
See  Toulmin's  Digest,  p.  464.  t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  90,  91. 


A.D.  1787.] 


VAU.EY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


471 


throuiihout  the  whole  Ohio 


region, 


from  the  sources  of  the 


Monongahela  to  those  of  the  Tennessee  and  Cumberland  Riv- 
ers. To  such  an  extent  had  this  vindictive  feeling  been  car- 
ried in  Kentucky  and  upon  the  Cumberland  River,  that  a  mil- 
itary invasion  of  Louisiana  was  devised  for  redressing  the 
wrongs  of  the  western  people,  and  seizing  the  port  of  New  Or- 
leans ;  provided  the  Federal  government  failed  to  obtain  from 
Spain,  by  negotiation,  such  commercial  privileges  in  Louisiana 
as  were  indispensable  to  the  prosperity  of  the  western  people. 

Such  had  been  the  excitement  in  Kentucky  and  Tennessee, 
as  early  as  the  spring  of  1787,  that  the  Spanish  governor  be- 
came seriously  apprehensive  of  an  invasion  from  Kentucky,  in 
defiance  of  the  Federal  authority.  At  the  same  time,  the  west- 
ern people,  indignant  at  the  neglect  of  the  Federal  government 
in  not  securing  for  thsm  the  free  use  of  the  Mississippi,  were 
strongly  tempted  to  separate  from  the  Atlantic  States,  and  to 
secure  for  themselves  an  independent  form  of  government, 
which  would  enable  them  to  obtain  from  Spain,  under  one  form 
or  another,  those  commercial  advantages  which  they  were  de- 
termined to  possess. 

It  was  under  these  circumstances  that  Colonel  James  Wilkin- 
son, an  enterprising  merchant  of  Kentucky,  and  a  man  of  fine 
talents  and  address,  made  arrangements  with  the  Spanish  au- 
thorities to  descend  to  New  Orleans  with  several  boats  loaded 
with  tobacco,  flour,  and  other  articles  of  western  production. 
Having  reached  New  Orleans  in  safety,  he  obtained  an  inter- 
view with  the  governor,  and  at  length  succeeded  in  securing 
for  himself  and  a  few  friends  permission  to  trade  with  the  city, 
and  to  introduce  free  of  duties  many  articles  of  western  pro- 
duction adapted  to  the  Louisiana  market.* 

*  The  exactions  of  the  Spanish  government  were  in  the  shape  of  heavy  transit  and 
port  duties  on  all  produce  and  articles  of  trade  descending  the  Mississippi  from  any  of 
the  western  settlements  upon  the  Ohio  and  its  numerous  tributaries.  Every  article 
thus  introduced  into  Louisiana,  of  which  Western  Tennessee  was  claimed  as  a  portion, 
and  all  kinds  of  trade  descending  the  river,  were  compelled  to  pay  an  excise  duty  to  the 
government,  varying  at  different  times,  according  to  the  arbitrary  will  of  the  intendant, 
or  the  orders  of  the  king,  from  six  to  twenty-Jive  per  cent,  ad  valorem.  For  the  collec- 
tion of  this  duty,  a  military  force,  with  revenue  officers,  was  stationed  at  New  Madrid, 
and  other  points  below,  by  whom  every  boat  was  compelled  to  land  and  submit  to  have 
their  cargoes  overhauled,  and  sometimes,  when  deception  was  snapected,  to  have  them 
unloaded,  in  order  that  the  Spanish  officers  might  be  satisfied  of  the  cargo,  npon  which 
to  assess  the  duties.  When  duties  were  thus  paid,  and  papers  famished,  the  boat  waa 
required  to  land  at  each  post  below,  and  exhibit  the  evidence  of  having  paid  duties ; 
refusal  to  do  so  exposed  them  to  be  iired  into  from  the  batterieq,  or  to  be  pursued,  and 
subjected  to  heavy  fines,  imprisonment,  and  confiscations.    The  latter  penalty  was  a 


472 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


In  making  concessions  m  favor  of  the  western  people,  Gov- 
ernor Miro  desired  to  avail  himself  of  the  talents  and  popular- 
ity of  Colonel  Wilkinson  in  Kentucky  and  Tennessee  for  con- 
ciliating the  hostile  feelings  and  the  inimical  prejudices  which 
had  been  excited  against  the  Spanish  authorities.  Through 
him,  in  addition  to  the  relaxation  of  the  restrictions  upon  the 
river  trade,  and  an  abatement  on  the  transit  duties,  the  govern- 
or proposed  to  encourage  emigration  from  Kentucky  and  the 
Cumberland  settlements,  to  the  parishes  of  West  Florida  con- 
tiguous to  the  Mississippi.* 

The  Spanish  minister,  Don  Diego  Guardoqui,  apprised  of  the 
governor's  views,  and  conceiving  that  he  might  derive  a  pecu- 
niary advantage  from  such  a  state  of  things,  readily  assented 
to  the  policy,  and  became  deeply  interested  in  promoting  the 
proposed  plans  for  securing  harmony  of  feeling  between  the 
western  people  and  the  Spanish  authorities  of  Louisiana.  The 
intendant  of  Louisiana,  agreeably  to  the  views  of  the  governor, 
had  consented  to  relax  the  revenue  laws,  and  indirectly  to  sanc- 
tion occasional  violations  of  a  rigorous  and  oppressive  law. 

This  state  of  things  continued  for  nearly  two  years,  when 
Guardoqui,  perceiving  that  his  expectations,  in  a  pecuniary  point 
of  view,  were  not  realized,  determined  to  require  the  rigid  ex- 
ecution of  the  revenue  laws  upon  the  river  trade. 

"  While  Colonel  Wilkinson  was  in  New  Orleans,  in  June, 
1787,  Governor  Miro  requested  him  to  give  his  sentiments  free- 
ly, in  writing,  respecting  the  political  interests  of  Spain  and 
the  Americans  of  the  United  States  inhabiting  the  regions 
upon  the  western  waters.  This  he  did  at  length  in  a  docu- 
ment of  fifteen  or  twenty  pages,  which  the  governor  transmit- 
ted to  Madrid  to  be  laid  before  the  King  of  Spain. 

favorite  measure  with  the  Spanish  ofBcers ;  for,  in  that  case,  they  generally  managed 
to  appropriate  the  spoils  to  their  private  use. 

*  See  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  passim.  In  several  portions  of  this  work  we 
have  been  compelled,  in  making'  references  to  authority,  to  depend  chiefly  on  Butler's 
History  of  Kentucky,  which  embraces  most  of  the  early  history  of  Western  Virginia 
and  Kentucky,  which  is  imbodied  in  the  first  volume  of  Humphrey  Marshall's  Historj' 
of  the  state.  The  material  facts  and  incidents  are  certainly  imbodied  in  Butler's 
History  of  Kentucky,  which  comprises  much  western  histoi-y  besides  that  properly  be- 
longing to  that  state.  It  is  only  to  be  regretted  that  Mr.  Butler  did  not  devote  more 
time  and  attention  to  a  systematic  order  of  arrangement,  to  a  perspicuous,  dignified, 
and  comprehensive  phraseology  so  becoming  the  history  of  a  member  of  this  young  and 
glorious  Republic  Had  his  work  been  prepared  with  (hat  patient  care  md  mature  re- 
flection which  would  have  enabled  him  to  present  'in  a^.>ful  matter  therein  contained 
in  that  clear,  concise,  and  lucid  manner  which  charuccerizes  our  ablest  historians,  he 
would  have  merited  and  received  the  gratitude  of  the  Great  West. 


A.D.  1787.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


473 


"  In  this  document  he  urges  the  natural  right  of  the  western 
people  to  follow  the  current  of  rivers  flowing  through  their 
country  to  the  sea.  He  states  the  extent  of  the  country,  the 
richness  of  the  soil,  abounding  in  choice  productions  proper  for 
foreign  markets,  to  which  they  have  no  means  of  conveying 
them  should  the  Mississippi  be  shut  against  them.  He  sets 
forth  the  advantages  which  Spain  might  derive  from  allowing 
them  the  free  use  of  the  river.  He  proceeded  to  show  the 
rapid  increase  of  population  in  the  western  country,  and  the 
eagerness  with  which  every  individual  looked  forward  to  the 
navigation  of  that  river ;  he  described  the  general  abhorrence 
with  which  they  received  the  intelligence  that  Congress  was 
about  to  sacrifice  their  dearest  interest  by  ceding  to  Spain,  for 
twenty  years,  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi ;  and  represents 
it  as  a  fact  that  they  are  on  the  point  of  separating  themselves 
entirely  from  the  Union  on  that  account ;  he  addressed  himself 
to  the  governor's  fears  by  an  ominous  display  of  their  strength ; 
and  argues  the  impolicy  of  Spain  in  being  so  blind  to  her  own 
interest  as  to  refuse  them  an  amicable  participation  in  the  nav- 
igation of  the  river,  thereby  forcing  them  into  violent  meas- 
ures. He  assures  the  Spanish  governor  that,  in  case  of  such 
alternative,  *  Great  Britain  stands  ready,  w  ith  expanded  arms, 
to  receive  them,'  and  to  assist  their  efforts  to  accomplish  that 
object,  and  quotes  a  conversation  with  a  member  of  the  British 
Parliament  to  that  effect.  He  states  the  facility  with  which 
the  province  of  Louisiana  might  be  invaded  by  the  united  forces 
of  the  English  and  Americans,  the  former  advancing  from  Can- 
ada by  way  of  the  Illinois  River,  and  the  latter  by  way  of  the 
Ohio  River;  also,  the  practicability  of  proceeding  from  Louisi- 
ana to  Mexico,  in  a  march  of  twenty  days ;  that  in  case  of  such 
invasion.  Great  Britain  will  aim  at  the  possession  of  Louisiana 
and  New  Orleans,  and  leave  the  navigation  of  the  river  free  to 
the  Americans.  He  urged  forcibly  the  danger  of  the  Spanish 
interests  in  North  America,  with  Great  Britain  in  possession 
of  the  Mississippi,  as  she  was  already  in  possession  of  the  St. 
Lawrence  and  the  great  lakes.  He  concluded  with  an  apolo- 
gy for  the  freedom  with  which  he  had  expressed  his  views  by 
the  governor's  particular  request;  that  such  as  they  are,  they 
are  from  a  man  *  whose  head  may  err,  but  whose  heart  can  not 
deceive.'"* 

*  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  2d  ed.,  p.  519,  520,  Appendix. 


474 


HISTORY    OF  THE 


[book  IV. 


These  views  accorded  so  nearly  with  those  which  had  been 
already  suggested  by  the  condition  of  things  on  the  Mississippi 
and  in  the  West,  that  they  were  unhesitatingly  adopted  as  the 
correct  principles  for  the  government  of  his  Catholic  majesty's 
officers  charged  with  the  administration  of  affairs  in  Louisiana. 

The  object  of  Colonel  Wilkinson,  in  this  statement  of  the 
relative  feelings  and  interests  of  the  two  countries,  was  evi- 
dently to  impress  upon  the  Spanish  government  forcibly  the 
importance  of  granting  to  the  American  people  of  the  West 
those  commercial  privileges  which  Spain  could  not  long  with- 
hold with  safety  to  her  dominion  on  the  Mississippi.  In  doing 
this,  he  deemed  it  expedient  to  operate  upon  not  only  their 
fears,  but  their  interests  and  their  love  of  self-preservation. 
Hence  he  held  out  to  the  Spanish  governor  the  possibility  of 
an  alliance  between  the  western  country  and  Louisiana. 

Nor  was  the  latter  mistaken  in  his  views  as  to  the  proper 
manner  in  which  these  concessions  were  to  be  effected.  The 
statement  of  Colonel  Wilkinson,  and  the  influence  of  his  ad- 
dress and  talents,  were  the  first  efficient  means  which  led  to 
the  change  of  policy  in  the  government  of  Louisiana.  Through 
Colonel  Wilkinson's  negotiation  and  his  diplomatic  address, 
the  governor  was  convinced  of  the  policy  of  conciliating  the 
western  people,  and  of  attaching  them  as  far  as  practicable  to 
the  Spanish  government.  For  this  purpose,  he  granted  per- 
mission for  Americans  from  Kentucky,  and  the  Cumberland 
River  to  emigrate  to  West  Florida  and  establish  themselves 
under  the  protection  of  Spain,  with  liberal  grants  of  land,  and 
other  privileges  granted  only  to  the  most  favored  nations.  At 
the  same  time,  the  intendant  of  Louisiana,  with  the  approba- 
tion of  the  governor  and  of  the  minister,  Don  Guardoqui,  near 
the  Federal  government,  relaxed  the  exactions  required  by  the 
revenue  laws,  and  extended  special  indulgences  to  favored 
persons  from  Kentucky  and  the  Cumberland.  While  these 
things  were  exerting  a  salutary  influence  in  conciliating  these 
growing  and  populous  settlements,  the  Spanish  minister  con- 
ceived the  plan  for  effecting  a  political  union  between  the  west- 
ern people  and  the  province  of  Louisiana.  The  first  step  to- 
ward the  accomplishment  of  this  desirable  object  was  the  plan 
of  forming  American  settlements  in  Upper  Louisiana,  as  well 
as  in  the  Florida  district  of  Lower  Louisiana.* 

*  Martin's  LoaiBiona,  vol.  ii.,  p.  90,  91. 


A.D.  1788.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MlSmssiPPI. 


475 


[A.D.  1788.]  A  large  American  settlement  was  to  be 
formed  on  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi,  between  the  mouth 
of  the  Ohio  and  the  St.  Francis  River.  General  Morgan,  an 
American  citizen,  received  a  large  grant  of  land  about  seventy 
miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  upon  which  he  was  to  in- 
troduce and  settle  an  American  colony.  Soon  afterward.  Gen- 
eral Morgan  arrived  with  his  colony,  and  located  it  about 
seventy  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  upon  the  ancient 
alluvions  which  extend  westward  to  the  White  Water  Creek, 
within  the  present  county  of  New  Madrid,  in  Missouri.  Here, 
upon  the  beautiful  rolling  plains,  he  laid  off  the  plan  of  a  mag- 
nificent city,  which,  in  honor  of  the  Spanish  capital,  he  called 
"  New  Madrid."  The  extent  and  plan  of  the  new  city  was  but 
little,  if  any,  inferior  to  the  old  capital  which  it  was  to  commem- 
orate. Spacious  streets,  extensive  public  squares,  avenues,  and 
promenades  were  tastefully  laid  off  to  magnify  and  adorn  the 
future  city.  In  less  than  twelve  months  from  its  first  location, 
it  had  assumed,  according  to  Major  Stoddart,  the  appearance 
of  a  regularly  built  town,  with  numerous  temporary  houses  dis- 
tributed over  a  high  and  beautiful  undulatory  plain.  Its  lati- 
tude was  determined  to  be  36°  30'  north.  In  the  center  of  the 
site,  and  about  one  mile  from  the  Mississippi,  was  a  beautiful 
lake,  to  be  inclosed  by  the  future  streets  of  the  city. 

This  policy  was  continued  for  nearly  two  years,  in  hopes  of 
gaining  over  the  western  people  to  an  adherence  to  the  Span- 
ish interests.  Nor  was  it  wholly  unsuccessful.  In  the  mean 
time,  many  individuals  in  Kentucky,  as  well  as  on  the  Cumber- 
land, had  become  favorably  impressed  toward  a  union  with 
Louisiana  under  the  Spanish  crown,  and  a  very  large  portion 
of  them  had  been  highly  dissatisfied  with  the  policy  of  the 
Federal  government,  because  it  had  failed  to  secure  for  them 
the  free  navigation  of  the  river,  either  by  formal  negotiation 
or  by  force  of  arms. 

But.  this  state  of  mitigated  feeling  toward  the  Spanish  au- 
thorities was  of  but  short  duration.  Don  Diego  Guardoqui,  the 
minister,  had  failed  to  derive  that  pecuniary  advantage  which 
he  had  expected  from  his  connivance  at  repeated  infractions 
of  the  revenue  laws.  As  if  the  facts  had  just  come  to  his 
knowledge,  he  now  affected  great  indignation  at  the  remissness 
of  the  intendant,  who  had  permitted  these  delinquencies ;  and, 
in  an  official  communication,  severely  reprimanded  his  derelic- 


476 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book    IV. 


tion  of  duty,  and  threatened  to  represent  his  conduct  and  his 
delinquencies  to  the  court  at  Madrid.  The  intendant,  alarmed 
for  the  safety  of  his  otHce,  resumed  the  rigorous  enforcement 
of  the  revenue  hiws.  Seizures,  confiscations,  delays,  and  im- 
prisonments, affecting  owners,  supercargoes,  and  crews  of  flat- 
boats  descending  the  river,  became  frequent  and  embarrassing  ; 
and  Louisiana  was  again  menaced  with  invasion  from  the  Ohio. 
Hundreds  of  fiery  spirits  in  Kentucky  and  on  the  Cumberland 
were  anxious  to  embark  in  the  enterprise. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  city  of  New  Orleans  had  been  nearly  de- 
stroyed by  fire.  On  the  21st  of  March,  about  three  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon,  the  chapel  of  a  Spaniard  in  Chartres-street  took  fire, 
and,  by  a  strong  wind,  it  soon  spread  over  the  city,  until  nine 
hundred  houses  were  consumed,  besides  an  immense  amount 
of  property  of  every  description.  This  was  the  severest  ca- 
lamity which  had  ever  befallen  the  city,  and  threw  the  whole 
province  into  want  and  embarrassment.*  Provisions  of  all 
kinds  became  scarce,  and  great  dist>Hss  prevailed  in  the  city. 
To  prevent  actual  suffering  and  famine,  the  government  was 
obliged  to  take  measures  for  supplying  the  necessities  of  the 
people.  A  contract  was  opened  for  the  supply  of  a  large 
quantity  of  flour  from  the  Ohio  region,  upon  which  large  ad- 
vances of  money  were  made,  and,  as  an  additional  inducement 
to  traders  and  boatmen,  the  privilege  of  introducing  other  arti- 
cles was  granted  to  those  who  brought  cargoes  of  flour. 

The  embarrassment  ii  \  privations  occasioned  by  this  un- 
foreseen calamity  in  the  city  admonished  the  governor  of  the 
necessity  of  relaxing  all  the  commercial  restrictions  upon  the 
river  trade,  and  of  releasing  those  individuals  who  had  been 
imprisoned  for  former  violations  of  the  revenue  laws,  and  to 
restore  the  property  previously  seized  and  confiscated. 

About  this  time  an  arrangement  was  entered  into  with  Col- 
onel Wilkinson  for  the  introduction  of  one  or  more  boat-loads 
of  tobacco  annually  into  the  city.  Permission  was  also  extend- 
ed to  emigrants  from  the  settlements  upon  the  Wabash,  Ken- 
tucky, or  Cumberland  Rivers,  to  settle  in  Louisiana,  upon  con- 
dition of  their  paying  a  duty  of  twenty-five  per  cent,  upon  all 
property  introduced  for  sale.  Slaves,  stock,  provisions  for  two 
years,  farming  utensils  and  implements,  were  to  be  free  from 
any  duty  whatever.     Lands/or  the  settlement  of  farms  and 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  97. 


A.D.  1788.] 


VALLEY    OF    Till       "ISSlIt* 'IPPI. 


477 


for  residences  were  freely  tendered  to  those  '  lo  were  willing 
to  become  Spanish  subjects.  Man}  American  -itizena.  <  m^jouf- 
aged  by  these  conditions,  and  allured  by  the  mild  cfin.  and 
the  productive  soil  of  West  Florida,  removed,  with  th  i  fam- 
ilies and  effects,  to  that  country,  and  became  incorp<'.  ted  as 
Spanish  subjects. 

During  the  year  1788  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States 
was  extended  over  the  Northwestern  Territory,  which  coin^ 
prised  the  whole  country  from  the  Ohio  northwestwardly  to  the 
Great  Lakes  and  the  Mississippi.  By  the  ordinance  of  1787, 
for  the  organization  of  this  territory,  involuntary  servitude  or 
slavery  was  forever  abolished  within  its  limits.  Many  of  the 
French  settlers  in  the  Illinois  country  were  in  the  possession 
of  negro  slaves,  introduced  under  the  French  jurisdiction,  which 
tolerated  slavery,  as  did  that  of  Virginia  afterward.  Unwill- 
ing now  to  be  stripped  of  a  valuable  species  of  property  by 
subsequent  legislation,  they  determined  to  remove  into  the 
Spanish  dominion  west  of  the  Mississippi,  where  negro  slavery 
was  free  from  restrictions. 

The  population  of  Louisiana  for  several  years  had  been  grad- 
ually increasing  in  number,  from  Spain  and  France  and  their 
flependences,  no  less  than  from  the  United  States,  and  the  cens- 
us taken  during  the  year  1788  presented  an  aggregate  popu- 
lation of  42,G11  souls  in  Louisiana  and  the  West  Florida  dis- 
tricts. This  aggregate  indicated  an  increase  of  nearly  ten 
thousand  persons  since  the  census  of  1785,  the  greater  portion 
f  whom  were  Spanish  immigrants  and  French  Acadians,  in- 
troduced two  years  befoi'e  ;  the  remainder  were  chiefly  Amer- 
icans, who  had  settled  in  the  West  Florida  districts. 

The  whole  population  by  this  census  is  divided  into  the  fol- 
lowing classes  and  numbers,  viz. :  free  whites,  19,445 ;  free  per- 
sons of  color,  1701 ;  slaves,  21,465.* 


o 


*  See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  99,  100. 
ill  the  following  order,  viz. : 

I.  Lower  Louisiana. 
1.  City  of  New  Orleans     .     .    . 
'-'.  Below  the  city  to  the  Balize 

:i.  Terre  aux  Beufs 

4.  Bayous  St.  John  and  Gentilly 

a.  Barrataria 

().  Tchonpitonlas  Parish  .  .  . 
7.  Parish  of  St.  Charles  .  .  . 
e.  St.  John  Baptist        .... 


This  population  was  distributed  over  the  province 


5338 

2378 

661 

772 

40 

7589 

2381 

1368 


9.  St.  James     ....         ...  1551 

10.  La  Fourcho 1164 

11.  La  Fourche  Interior     ....  1500 

12.  Iberville       914 

13.  Point  Coupee  Parish     ....  2004 

14.  Oppelousas 1985 

15.  Attakapas        2541 

16.  New  Iberia 190 

17.  Washita 232 

18.  Rapides       U7 


478 


I1I8T0IIY    or   TUB 


[book  IV. 


From  the  year  1788  we  may  date  the  settled  policy  of  Spain, 
through  her  colonial  and  diplomatic  authorities,  to  endeuTor, 
by  intrigue  and  diplomacy,  to  acquire  the  western  portion  of 
the  United  States.  The  king,  having  approved  the  judicious 
policy  of  Governor  Miro  relative  to  the  indulgences  extended 
to  the  western  people,  relieved  him  from  the  interference  of 
the  intendant  by  the  resignation  of  Navarro,  and  the  union  of 
his  duties  and  authority  in  the  governor  himself.  Navarro,  in 
the  mean  time,  had  endeavored  to  rouse  the  court  of  Madrid 
to  the  danger  to  be  apprehended  from  the  increasing  power  of 
the  United  States.'"'  He  had  portrayed  in  strong  colors  the 
ambition  of  the  Federal  government  on  the  subject  of  western 
territory,  and  the  thirst  for  conquest,  which,  he  asserted,  would 
be  gratified  only  by  the  extension  of  their  dominion  to  the 
shores  of  the  Pacific  Ocean.  He  also  recommended,  as  the 
only  true  policy  for  Spain  to  pursue,  the  necessity  of  dismem- 
bering the  Federal  union  by  procuring  the  separation  of  the 
western  country  from  the  Atlantic  States.  This  accomplish- 
ed, the  danger  of  the  Spanish  provinces  from  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  Federal  power  would  immediately  cease,  and 
Spain  would  be  at  liberty  to  enter  into  negotiations  mutually 
advantageous  to  Louisiana  and  the  western  people,  who  were 
impatient  of  the  delays  and  failures  of  the  Federal  government 
to  promote  their  interests. 

To  effect  this  object,  he  recommended  the  judicious  distribu- 
tion of  pensions  to  prominent  individuals  of  Kentucky,  and  an 
extension  of  commercial  privileges  to  the  western  people  gener- 
ally. The  judicious  control  of  these  means,  in  his  opinion, 
would  make  it  no  difficult  matter  for  Spain  to  arrest  forever 
the  designs  of  the  United  States  for  extending  their  territory 
in  the  West,  while  it  would  greatly  augment  the  power  of 
Spain  in  Louisiana,  and  immensely  increase  its  resources.  The 
suggestions  of  the  minister  were  well  received  at  court,  and 


19.  Avoyelles 

.      209 

III.  We»t  Florida. 

20.  Natchitoches 

.     1021 

1.  Manchac  and  Oalveston    .    . 

.       553 

21.  Arkanaaa  Settlements. .    .    . 

119 

2.  Baton  Roage 

68'-' 

3.  Feliciana 

.      TM 

II.  In  Upper  Louisiana. 

4.  Natchea       

.     2C7!t 

1.  St.  Genevieve 

.      896 

9.  Mobile 

.     1468 

S.  St.  Lonis 

.     1197 

6.  Pensacola 

.       265 

*  In  this  respect  Navarro  seemed  to  have  had  a  prophetic  vision  into  futurity,  and  to 
have  foreseen  the  events  which  were  to  transpire  more  than  half  a  century  afterward, 
when  Texas  and  Oregon  were  finally  embraced  in  the  limits  of  the  Federal  jurisdiction, 
permanently  in  1846. 


A.D.  1780.] 


VATiLEY    or   THE    MlSdlSfllPPI. 


170 


.  552 
.  68'J 
.  TM 
.  2G7!t 
.  1464 
.  S65 
ty,  and  to 
ifterward, 
riadiction, 


formed  the  bnsis  of  the  subsequent  policy  of  Spain  and  Louisi- 
ana toward  the  Federal  government  and  the  western  people 
respectively,  until  the  "Treaty  of  Madrid,"  seven  years  after- 
ward.* 

[A.D.  1789.]  Thus  commenced  that  series  of  intrigues  and 
vexatious  court  delays  on  the  part  of  Spain,  which  character- 
ized the  political  relations  of  that  power  toward  the  United 
States  until  the  final  evacuation  of  the  Natchez  District  ton 
years  afterward ;  a  state  of  uncertain  peace,  which  for  years 
continued  to  disturb  the  harmony  of  the  two  countries,  ond  to 
destroy  mutual  confidence.!  Nor  were  persons  of  talent  and 
influence  wanting  in  Kentucky  who  were  willing  to  protnote 
the  designs  of  Spain  in  producing  a  separation  of  the  West,  for 
the  purpose  of  efilecting  a  political  and  commercial  alliance  with 
Louisiana  under  the  protection  of  Spain. 

Under  the  adopted  policy  of  Spain  relative  to  emigration  from 
the  United  States,  and  the  river  trade,  the  population  continued 
to  advance  west  of  the  mountains,  and  emigration  to  Louisi- 
ana and  West  Florida  began  to  add  hundreds  annually  to  the 
population  of  the  province. 

At  the  same  time,  a  new  impulse  was  given  to  the  trade  of 
the  western  people  with  the  Spanish  provinces  generally, 
through  the  port  of  New  Orleans.  The  surplus  products  of  the 
settlements  on  the  Monongahela,  the  Ohio,  the  Kentucky,  and 
Cumberland  Rivers  consisted  of  flour,  pork,  beef,  whisky,  ap- 
ples, cider,  lumber,  horses,  cattle,  and  many  other  agricultural 
and  manufactured  products,  which  met  with  a  ready  sale  in 
New  Orleans,  as  well  as  other  points  upon  the  river.|  An 
active  trade  in  breadstufTs  had  likewise  been  opened  with  the 
city  of  Philadelphia  by  sea,  and  a  state  of  general  good  feeling 
existed  between  the  western  people  and  the  Spanish  authori- 
ties in  Louisiana. 

Enterprise  was  awakened  in  the  West,  and  capital  freely  in- 
vested in  rearing  those  products  most  in  den^and  in  Louisiana 
and  the  Spanish  provinces  throughout  the  Continent,  as  well  as 
in  the  West  India  Islands,  and  men  of  enterprise  and  capital 
embarked  their  means  in  the  navigation  of  the  river  and  in  the 
extension  of  western  commerce. 

[A.D.  1700.]     For  two  years  this  state  of  amicable  trade 

*  Martiu'B  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  100,  ice.    See,  ako,  Butler's  Kentucky, 
t  See  Bntler'a  Kentucky.  i  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  103. 


480 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


continued,  and  from  all  these  settlements  emigrants  and  ad- 
venturers continued  to  descend,  upon  every  spring  flood,  in 
company  with  the  regular  trading-boats  from  the  Ohio.  Many 
of  them,  well  pleased  with  the  climate  and  the  agricultural  fa- 
cilities of  the  country,  remained  and  entered  into  the  cultiva- 
tion of  tobacco,  cotton,  and  indigo,  then  the  most  valuable  sta- 
ples of  Louisiana.  Others,  who  had  contemplated  a  permanent 
residence  in  the  Florida  d'stricts,  averse  to  the  tenets  and  rites 
of  the  Catholic  Church,  to  which  all  were  required  to  adhere, 
yielding  to  their  prejudices,  returned  to  the  United  States,  to 
enjoy  freedom  of  opinion  in  their  religious  sentiments  and  the 
church  rituals. 

But  Spain  had  become  jealous  of  the  advance  of  the  Federal 
power,  and  the  Spanish  authorities  became  highly  disquieted 
by  the  extension  of  the  Federal  jurisdiction  over  the  "  South- 
western Territory,"  and  the  relinquishment  of  sovereignty  over 
the  same  by  the  State  of  North  Carolina.  About  the  same  time, 
the  commissioners  of  the  Federal  government  had  succeeded  in 
concluding  a  treaty  of  peace  and  boundary  with  the  chiefs  of 
the  Creek  nation,  and  which  had  been  fully  ratified  by  them  in 
the  city  of  New  York.  To  counteract  the  effects  of  this  treaty, 
the  Spanish  authorities  immediately  instituted  a  negotiation 
with  the  Creeks,  by  which  they  were  induced  to  prohibit  the 
opening  of  the  boundary  line  stipulated  in  the  treaty.  Thus, 
for  more  than  a  year  subsequently,  did  the  Creeks  refuse  to  rat- 
ify the  boundary  line*  stipulated  in  the  treaty,  and  many  of 
them  had  been  induced  by  the  Spanish  emissaries  to  assume  a 
hostile  attitude  toward  the  United  States. 

[A.D.  1791.]  Hence,  during  the  years  1790  and  1791,  the 
intercourse  between  the  western  people  of  the  United  States 
and  those  of  Louisiana  was  greatly  embarrassed  by  the  con- 
tinuation of  Indian  hostilities  upon  the  northwestern  frontier, 
and  also  upon  the  southwestern  borders  of  the  Cumberland  set- 
tlements. Such  had  been  the  hostile  operations  of  the  north- 
ern Indians,  that  a  succession  of  military  expeditions  had  been 
arrayed  against  them,  and  had  penetrated  to  the  center  of  their 
country.  The  southern  Indians  had  now  taken  up  arms 
against  the  southern  frontier,  for  the  avowed  purpose  of  arrest- 
ing the  further  advance  of  the  Federal  power. 

Heretofore  but  little  attention  had  been  given  to  education 

^  Maitin's  Louisiaua,  vol.  ii.,  p.  106. 


BOOK  IV. 

and  ad- 
flood,  in 
Many 
Itural  fa- 

cultiva- 
able  sta- 
rmanent 
and  rites 
»  adiiere, 
Jtates,  to 

and  the 

Federal 
squieted 
"  South- 
;nty  over 
me  time, 
ceded  in 
chiefs  of 
r  them  in 
is  treaty, 
^otiation 
hibit  the 
Thus, 
se  to  rat- 
many  of 
issume  a 

791, the 
States 
the  con- 
frontier, 
land  set- 
e  north- 
lad  been 
•  of  their 
ip  arms 
if  arrest- 

ducation 


A.D.  1792.] 


VALLEY    OF   TUB   MISSISfllPPI. 


481 


in  Louisiana ;  schools  were  few,  and  confined  exclusively  to  the 
wealthy,  or  were  under  the  control  of  the  clergy,  where  the  ex- 
penses of  education  eflfectually  excluded  the  great  mass  of  the 
people.  The  only  school  in  New  Orleans  was  one  under  the 
control  of  the  priests,  taught  by  a  few  Spanish  nuns  who  ar- 
rived soon  after  O'Reilly's  departure.  During  the  autumn  of 
1791,  however,  a  number  of  French  refugees  from  the  massa- 
cre of  St.  Domingo  arrived  in  New  Orleans,  and,  being  desti- 
tute of  property,  were  compelled  to  seek  a  livelihood  in  the  ca- 
pacity of  teachers.  Many  of  them  having  been  well  educated, 
became  valuable  citizens  of  Louisiana,  and  contributed  greatly 
to  the  subsequent  introduction  of  schools  in  the  province.  The 
same  catastrophe  in  St.  Domingo  furnished  New  Orleans  with 
the  first  regular  dramatic  corps. 

[A.D.  1792.]  The  same  year  closed  the  mild  and  judicious 
administration  of  Governor  Miro  in  Louisiana.  Being  promoted 
to  the  Mexican  provinces,  he  retired  from  Louisiana,  esteem- 
ed and  regretted  no  less  by  the  people  of  the  province  than  by 
those  of  Kentucky  and  the  Cumberland  settlements.  He  was 
succeeded  in  the  government  of  Louisiana  by  Don  Francisco 
Louis  Hector,  Baron  de  Carondelet,  who  exercised  the  offices 
of  governor  and  intendant.  On  the  22d  of  January,  1792,  he 
issued  his  hando  de  buen  gobierno.  In  it  was  set  forth  the  gen- 
eral policy  of  his  future  administration,  besides  several  new 
regulations  for  the  city  police.  He  also  instituted  regulations 
for  lighting  the  streets,  and  for  organizing  fire  companies  for 
the  protection  of  the  city  from  the  calamity  of  destructive  fires. 

In  July  following,  he  issued  his  proclamation,  by  order  of 
the  king,  establishing  sundry  wholesome  and  humane  regula- 
tions for  the  treatment  of  slaves,  tending  greatly  to  meliorate 
their  general  condition.* 

The  city  of  New  Orleans  continued  to  augment  in  popula- 
tion and  to  extend  its  commerce.  By  the  census  of  1792,  it 
was  found  to  contain  nearly  six  thousand  inhabitants,  with  a 
proportionate  increase  in  commercial  importance. 

The  new  governor,  imitating  the  example  of  his  predecessor, 
continued  to  extend  commercial  facilities  to  the  western  peo- 
ple, and  to  encourage  the  existing  trade  between  the  city  of 
Philadelphia  and  New  Orleans.  Although  contrary  to  instruc- 
tions from  the  minister  of  finance,  yet  such  was  the  general  ad- 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  112. 

Vol.  I. — H  h 


482 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


vantage  of  this  policy  to  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  and  to  the 
whole  province  indirectly,  that  the  king  subsequently  justified 
him  in  the  partial  infraction  of  the  revenue  laws  relative  to  the 
western  people.  In  accordance  with  the  same  amicable  com- 
mercial policy  with  the  people  of  the  United  States,  before  the 
close  of  the  year  1792  the  governor  had  permitted  several  mer- 
chants from  Philadelphia  to  establish  commercial  houses  in  New 
Orleans  for  conducting  the  American  commerce  of  the  city.* 

[A.D.  1793.]  About  this  time  the  political  disturbances  in 
France  began  to  affect,  not  only  the  United  States,  but  Louisi- 
ana also.  France  and  Spain  were  at  war ;  and  French  emis- 
saries sought,  through  the  pi'ejudice  which  had  been  roused 
against  the  Spaniards  relative  to  the  navigation  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, to  instigate  an  invasion  of  Louisiana  and  Florida  by  the 
people  of  the  United  States,  and,  if  practicable,  even  a  separa- 
tion of  the  Western  States,  and  an  alliance  with  Louisiana  un- 
der the  dominion  and  protection  of  France.  Connected  with 
this  scheme,  a  revolt  of  the  French  population  of  Louisiana 
against  the  Spanish  authority  was  contemplated. 

Such  was  the  menacing  attitude  of  affairs  in  Louisiana,  that 
Governor  Carondelet  deemed  it  expedient  to  adopt  all  prudent 
measures  for  placing  the  province  in  a  proper  state  of  defense 
against  foreign  as  well  domestic  enemies.  The  old  fortifica- 
tions near  the  city  were  superseded  by  two  new  forts  com- 
menced upon  the  bank  of  the  river,  one  above  and  the  other 
immediately  below  the  city.  Three  redoubts  defended  the 
back  part  of  the  city,  the  central  one  being  the  principal.  At 
the  middle  of  each  flank  was  also  a  battery ;  and  the  whole 
was  surrounded  by  a  deep  ditch,  within  which  was  a  strong 
palisade  barrier.f  Other  forts,  at  different  points  on  the  river, 
above  and  below,  were  likewise  placed  in  a  proper  state  of 
defense. 

The  militia  were  also  organized  and  trained,  ready  for  serv- 
ice at  the  shortest  notice.  The  governor  reported  the  number 
of  militia  fit  for  service  in  the  province  as  between  five  and  six 
thousand  men,  and  that  the  provincial  authorities  could  at 
any  time  within  three  weeks  concentrate  three  thousand  men 
in  any  part  of  the  province.  J 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  115.  t  Idem,  p.  117. 

X  The  militia  were  orgauized  as  follows  : 

1.  In  New  Orleans  there  were  five  companies  of  volunteers,  one  company  of  arti^ 
lery,  and  two  companies  of  riflemen,  each  containing  one  hundred  men. 


A.D.  1794.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


483 


Meantime  the  revolutionary  spirit  of  France  had  begun  to 
extend  its  influence  into  Louisiana.  The  poHtical  zealots  of 
Jacobinical  France  were  eager  to  commence  a  crusade  for  the 
recovery  of  their  estranged  countrymen  of  Louisiana  under  the 
dominion  of  France,  and  to  release  them  from  the  thraldom  of 
the  Spanish  dominion.  At  the  head  of  these  political  fanatics 
was  M.  Genet,  the  French  minister  near  the  government  of 
the  United  States.  This  fiery  and  indiscreet  functionary  of 
Republican  France  endeavored  to  rouse  the  people  of  the  Unit- 
ed States  into  an  unlawful  invasion  of  Louisiana  and  Florida. 
For  this  purpose,  under  the  authority  of  the  French  Republic, 
he  issued  commissions  to  a  number  of  men  as  officers  in  the 
French  armies,  with  authority  to  raise  troops  in  the  United 
States  for  the  contemplated  invasion  and  revolution  of  Louisi- 
ana. The  principal  field  of  M.  Genet's  operations  was  the 
western  country,  especially  in  Kentucky  and  Tennessee. 
Seizing  upon  the  excited  prejudices  of  the  western  people,  his 
agents  were  active  in  descanting  upon  the  incalculable  advan- 
tages which  would  accrue  to  the  whole  country  by  a  separa- 
tion from  the  Federal  Union  and  an  alliance  with  Louisiana 
under  the  protection  of  France.  Many  of  the  western  people 
of  the  United  States  were  seduced  by  his  emissaries  to  espouse 
the  schemes  of  the  French  agitator,  and  troops  were  actually 
imbodied  upon  the  southern  frontier  of  Georgia.  An  emissa- 
ry had  been  dispatched  to  the  Creek  nation,  and  had  enlisted 
a  large  body  of  Creek  warriors  in  the  enterprise.* 

[A.D.  1794.]  Although  the  Federal  government  of  the 
United  States  had  used  the  utmost  vigilance  and  decision  in  ar- 
resting the  contemplated  treasonable  expedition,  the  Governor 
of  Louisiana  neglected  no  measure  far  putting  his  province  in  a 
proper  state  of  defense  to  meet  the  threatened  danger.  The 
fortifications  around  the  city  of  New  Orleans  were  progressing 

9.  Between  the  city  and  tlu  Balize  were  four  companies  of  one  hundred  men  each. 

3.  The  "legion  of  the  Mississippi,"  comprising  tho  militia  on  both  sides  of  the  river, 
from  the  vicuiityof  ;';e  city  up  to  Point  Coupee,  constituted  ten  companies  of  fusiliers, 
four  companies  of  dragoons,  and  two  companies  of  grenadiers,  each  of  one  hundred  men. 

4.  At  Avoyelles,  one  company  of  infantry. 

5.  At  Washita,  one  company  of  cavalry. 

6.  At  the  Illinois,  two  companies  of  cavalry  and  two  companies  of  infantry. 

7.  At  the  German  and  Acadian  coasts,  one  regiment  of  one  thousand  men. 

8.  At  Mobile,  one  company  of  infantry  and  one  company  of  cavahy. — See  Marttn, 
vol.  ii.,  p.  117,  118. 

*  Sec  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  123.  Also,  American  State  Papers,  vol.  x., 
Boston  edition  of  1817.    Sec,  also,  chap.  iii.  of  this  book. 


484 


HISTORY   OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


daily  toward  completion ;  the  forts  at  Natchez,  Walnut  Hills, 
and  New  Madrid  were  re-enforced,  and  a  treaty  was  con- 
cluded with  the  Chickasas,  by  which  the  alliance  of  that  nation 
was  secured,  and  permission  obtained  for  the  establishment  of 
a  military  post  near  the  mouth  of  the  Margot  or  Wolf  River, 
upon  the  fourth  Chickasa  Bluff,  which  was  soon  afterward  oc- 
cupied by  a  stockade  fort.* 

The  militia  throughout  the  province  were  kept  in  a  state  of 
complete  organization,  and  the  people  were  exhorted  to  a  faitli- 
ful  adherence  to  their  duty  and  allegiance  to  his  Catholic  maj- 
esty, to  resist  every  attempt  to  excite  rebellion,  or  in  any  wise 
to  favor  the  military  invasion  designed  by  the  adherents  of 
France.  To  carry  out  measures  for  insuring  the  peace  and 
due  observance  of  the  law,  he  issued  his  proclamation  about 
the  first  of  June,  strictly  requiring  the  enforcement  of  certain 
police  regulations  throughout  the  province.f 

Yet  the  French  population  of  Louisiana,  influenced  by  re- 
ports of  the  successes  and  victories  of  the  French  arms  on  the 
Continent  of  Europe,  the  extension  of  Republican  principles 
throughout  France,  and  the  successful  experiment  of  free  gov- 
ernment in  the  United  States,  were  for  a  time  elated  with  the 
prospect  of  a  speedy  emaacipation  from  absolute  monarchy. 
But,  restrained  by  the  strong  arm  of  a  military  despotism,  with 
its  watchful  agents,  no  overt  act  of  rebellion  was  disclosed  in 
Louisiana,  and  soon  afterward  the  agents  of  Genet  were  ar- 
rested by  the  Federal  authorities,  and  by  their  demand  Genet 
himself  was  recalled  by  his  government.t 

To  counteract  the  effects  of  Genet's  intrigues  in  the  West,  and 
to  conciliate  the  feelings  and  prejudices  of  the  western  people 

"■  *  The  treaty  with  the  ChickasAs  was  conducted  by  Manuel  Gayoso  de  Lemos,  com- 
mandant and  lieutenant-governor  of  the  Natchez  District  The  Chickas&s  ceded  to 
him  the  fourth  blufiC  with  the  view  of  erecting  thereon  a  fort,  which  was  to  be  kept 
in  good  repair  for  the  purpose  of  protecting  Louisiana  from  any  invasion  which  might 
proceed  from  the  United  States.  Although  a  stockade  was  commenced  soon  afterward, 
it  was  not  completed  until  May,  1795,  when  it  was  called  "Fort  San  Ferdinando  de 
Barancas."  It  was  situated  upon  the  peninsula  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  Margot 
and  the  Mississippi.  In  June,  1795,  the  Baron  de  Carondelet  wrote  to  Maison  Rouge, 
"that  the  strong  fort  at  the  post  of 'Echore Margot,' defended  by  eight  pieces  of  eight- 
pounder  cannon,  was  completed  on  the  Slst  of  May,  1795,  when  the  Spanish  flag  was 
hoisted,  and  saluted  by  repeated  discharges  of  ';annon  from  the  shore  as  well  as  from 
the  galleys  in  the  river."—  See  report  of  case.  United  States,  plaintiffs  in  error,  v.  Coxe 
and  King,  Supreme  United  States  District  Court,  Louisiana,  1843,  p.  93. 
t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  126,  127. 

%  See  Martin's  Louisiana.  Butler's  Kentucky.  Also,  book  iv.,  chapter  iii.,  of  thii 
work. 


A.D.  1794.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPL 


485 


toward  the  Spanish  authorities  of  Louisiana,  the  governor  again 
relaxed  the  restrictions  upon  the  river  trade,  and  extended  im- 
portant privileges  to  men  of  enterprise,  preparatory  to  another 
attempt  to  win  over  the  western  people  to  the  dominion  of 
Spain. 

For  this  purpose,  he  employed  Thomas  Powers,  an  intelli- 
gent Englishman,  who  had  become  a  subject  of  his  Catholic 
majesty,  and  who  was  dispatched  as  a  secret  emissary  4o  Ken- 
tucky, for  the  purpose  of  conspiring  with  some  of  the  leading 
men  of  that  state  relative  to  the  best  measures  for  securing  the 
friendship  and  favor  of  the  people  toward  an  alliance  with 
Louisiana  under  the  Spanish  monarchy.  His  ostensible  busi- 
ness, however,  appeared  to  be  the  collection  of  materials  for  a 
natural  history  of  the  western  country.  Under  this  pretext, 
he  penetrated  as  far  as  the  interior  of  Kentucky,  where  he  held 
many  private  conferences  with  some  of  the  most  prominent  men 
in  the  state,  who  were  favorably  inclined  to  his  plans.  In  this 
visit,  his  real  and  principal  object,  so  far  as  practicable,  was  to 
remove  the  predilections  in  favor  of  a  French  alliance,  to  hold 
out  stronger  inducements  for  an  alliance  with  Spain,  and  to 
ascertain  the  general  state  of  feeling  in  relation  to  each  of  these 
projects,  together  with  any  general  information  relative  to  the 
strength  of  the  Federal  government  in  the  West.* 

In  the  alliance  with  Louisiana,  he  was  authorized  to  promise 
every  thing  desired  by  the  people ;  and  also  to  give  assurance 
of  the  readiness  of  the  colonial  government  to  furnish  arms, 
ammunition,  and  money  to  sustain  them  in  the  attempt  to  throw 
off  the  authority  of  the  Federal  government. 

Meantime,  the  people  of  Louisiana,  relieved  from  apprehen- 
sion relative  to  the  French  conspiracy,  had  become  reconciled 
to  the  mild  and  judicious  administration  of  his  Catholic  maj- 
esty's government,  by  which  his  French  subjects  were  admit- 
ted to  all  the  privileges  pertaining  to  his  Spanish  colonists. 

The  internal  administration  of  government,  the  ecclesiastical 
as  well  as  the  civil  authority,  became  firmly  and  quietly  estab- 
lished, and  the  officers  of  the  same  exerted  themselves  to  pro- 
mote the  prosperity  and  general  welfare  of  the  province.  The 
intendant  for  the  year  1794  was  Don  Francisco  de  Rendon. 
The  pope,  having  erected  Louisiana  and  Florida  into  an  inde- 
pendent bishopric,  the  worthy  Don  Louis  Penalvert  was  in- 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  133, 1S4.    Also,  book  iv.,  chap,  iii.,  of  this  work. 


486 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


Stalled  bishop  of  the  diocese,  with  two  additional  canons  to  the 
corps  of  the  provincial  clergy. 

The  bishop  having  established  his  Cathedral  in  the  city  of 
New  Orleans,  Don  Almonaster,  a  perpetual  regidor  and  alferez- 
real,  at  his  own  individual  cost,  completed  the  Cathedral  church 
edifice,  which  had  been  commenced  two  years  previously.* 
The  same  venerable  relic  of  former  years  still  remains  in  front 
of  the  public  square  in  the  French  municipality. 

[A.D.  1795.]  At  the  same  time,  the  Baron  de  Carondelet 
was  laudably  exerting  himself  to  enlarge,  beautify,  and  fortify 
the  city.  Early  in  May,  1794,  he  had  given  public  notice  of 
his  intention  to  open  a  canal  in  the  rear  of  the  city,  for  the 
double  purpose  of  draining  the  marshes  and  ponds  in  that  vi- 
cinity, and  opening  a  navigable  communication  with  the  sea. 
This  canal,  communicating  with  a  branch  of  the  Bayou  St.  John, 
would  eflfectually  accomplish  the  latter  object,  to  the  great  com- 
mercial advantage  of  the  city,  while  it  would  also  remove  one 
great  source  of  annoyance  and  disease  proceeding  from  the 
generation  of  innumerable  swarms  of  musquetoes  and  marsh 
miasma  from  the  stagnant  pools. 

To  accomplish  this  important  undertaking  for  the  advantage 
of  the  city,  he  proposed  to  accept  the  voluntary  contribution 
of  such  slave  labor  as  the  planters  and  others  in  the  vicinity 
might  be  willing  to  give.  The  month  of  June  had  been  an- 
nounced as  the  time  for  beginning  the  work,  at  which  time 
sixty  negro  slaves  were  sent  by  the  patriotic  inhabitants,  and 
the  canal  was  commenced.  The  work  progressed  rapidly ; 
but  the  depth  of  the  canal  was  only  six  feet.f  The  convicts 
and  a  few  slaves  continued  to  labor  upon  the  work  during  the 
remainder  of  the  year,  until  it  was  opened  to  the  intersection 
of  the  Bayou  St.  John,  through  which  a  navigable  route  lay  to 
Lake  Pontchartrain.  The  following  year  the  plan  of  making 
the  canal  navigable  up  to  the  city  was  concurred  in,  and  the 
governor  made  a  second  eall  upon  the  patriotism  and  public 
spirit  of  the  people  for  additional  labor.  To  this  call  a  gener- 
ous response  was  given,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  negroes 
were  sent  to  expedite  the  work.  The  excavation  was  now 
made  to  the  width  of  fifteen  feet,  with  a  depth  sufficient  to  ad- 
mit small  vessels  up  to  the  vicinity  of  the  ramparts  on  the  rear 
of  the  city.    In  November  the  governor  made  one  more  call 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  122-126.  t  Idem,  p.  124, 125. 


A.D.  1795.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MISSISSIPPI. 


487 


for  aid  from  the  planters  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  city,  as- 
suring them  that  with  eight  days*  work  from  the  same  number 
of  hands  he  would  be  able  to  render  the  canal  navigable  for 
small  vessels  up  to  the  "  basin,"  which  had  been  excavated  near 
the  ramparts  of  the  city.  The  labor  was  cheerfully  contribu- 
ted, and  the  canal  was  in  successful  operation  during  the  fol- 
lowing winter.  Early  in  the  spring  a  number  of  schooners 
came  up  and  moored  in  the  "  basin."  Thus,  in  the  autumn  of 
1795,  was  there  a  navigable  canal  route  opened  from  the  city, 
by  way  of  the  lakes,  to  the  sea  ;  and  the  spring  of  179G  wit- 
nessed ships  at  anchor  in  the  rear  of  the  city.  In  honor  of  the 
projector  and  patron,  the  Cabaldo,  by  a  decree,  designated  it  as 
"  Canal  Carondelet,"*  a  name  which  it  retains  to  this  day. 

[A.D.  1796.]  The  completion  of  the  canal  by  the  governor 
was  considered  a  presage  of  the  future  grandeur  and  commerce 
of  New  Orleans,  which  was  to  become  the  great  emporium  of 
Louisiana;  but  it  could  hardly  have  entered  his  imagination 
that  it  was  to  become  the  great  commercial  emporium  of  the 
whole  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  under  a  free  and  independent 
Republic.  A  change  was  also  about  to  be  introduced  in  the 
great  agricultural  staples  of  the  province. 

During  the  last  two  years,  1793  and  1794,  such  had  been  the 
ravages  of  the  insects  in  destroying  the  indigo  plant,  that  plant- 
ers were  compelled  to  turn  their  attention  to  some  other  staple 
product.  Up  to  this  time,  indigo  had  been  one  of  the  most  val- 
uable staples  ;  but  now  it  gave  place  gradually  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  sugar,  tobacco,  and  cotton,  which  were  deemed  a  more 
certain  crop.  Indigo,  as  a  crop,  had  formerly  been  liable  to  a 
partial  failure  from  the  vicissitudes  of  the  seasons ;  but  for  the 
last  two  years  the  insect  had  nearly  destroyed  the  entire  crop. 
In  the  year  1794, whole  fields  of  indigo  were  stripped  of  their 
foliage  by  these  destructive  vermin,  leaving  only  the  naked 
stalks  and  stems.f 

[A.D.  1795.]  During  the  summer  of  1795  a  number  of 
French  royalists  arrived  in  New  Orleans,  and  professed  to  de- 
sire an  asylum  for  many  of  their  friends,  who  had  arrived  in  the 
United  States  and  advanced  westward  to  join  their  country- 
men near  Gallipolis,  on  the  Ohio.  Among  these  exiled  royal- 
ists were  two  noblemen,  designated  as  the  Marquis  de  Maison 
Rouge  and  the  Baron  de  Bastrop.     The  marquis  proposed  to 


*  Martii:,  vol.  ii.,  p.  128-131. 


t  Idem,  p.  125. 


48S 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


settle  a  colony  of  French  upon  the  banks  of  the  Washita ;  for 
which  he  undertook  to  introduce  thirty  French  families  from  the 
Ohio  for  the  cultivation  of  wheat  and  the  manufacture  of  flour. 
But  the  nobleman  was  poor  and  destitute,  and,  withal,  wanting 
in  energy  and  character ;  consequently,  he  was  unable  to  ad- 
vance the  means  of  introducing  and  locating  his  colony.  The 
Baron  de  Carondelet,  deeming  it  a  favorable  opportunity  for 
settling  the  banks  of  the  Washita  with  an  industrious  agricul- 
tural population,  tendered  his  aid,  upon  the  most  liberal  and 
advantageous  terms  for  the  marquis.  For  this  purpose,  the 
governor  proposed  to  enter  into  an  agreement  jointly  with  the 
intendant  and  royal  treasurer,  to  pay  to  the  order  of  the  mar- 
quis for  every  French  Royalist  family  introduced  and  settled 
upon  the  Washita,  and  consisting  of  at  least  two  persons  capa- 
ble of  agricultural  or  mechanical  labor,  the  sum  of  two  hundred 
dollars.  Besides  this  amount  advanced  to  the  marquis,  the 
governor  agreed  to  give  every  such  family,  for  their  use  and 
benefit,  four  hundred  acres  of  land,  and  to  refund  the  actual 
expense  of  emigration  from  New  Madrid.  The  conditions  of 
the  agreement  were  subsequently  approved  by  the  king.  But 
the  marquis  never  completed  the  location  of  his  colony ;  having 
taken  up  his  residence  near  the  post  of  Miro,  he  spent  a  few 
years  in  poverty  and  obscurity,  until  1799,  when  he  died  in  in- 
digent circumstances,  having  entirely  failed  to  establish  his 
agricultural  colony. 

During  the  last  three  years  of  his  life  his  only  means  of  sub- 
sistence appears  to  have  been  the  pension  drawn  from  the 
Spanish  treasury,  in  the  shape  of  compensation  under  his  con- 
tract, for  three  or  four  families,  including  two  Anglo-American, 
which  he  alleged  to  have  introduced  and  settled  near  him. 

Such  is  the  foundation  upon  which  was  reared,  after  his 
death,  a  noted  land-claim  on  the  Washita  for  thirty  square 
leagues  of  land,  embracing  both  banks  of  the  Washita  for  near- 
ly thirty  miles  below  the  post  of  Miro.  This  claim,  comprising 
an  aggregate  of  more  than  200,000  acres,  was  known  and  des- 
ignated as  the  "  Maison  Rouge  grant,"  covering  some  of  the 
most  splendid  alluvions  in  Louisiana.* 

The  claim  made  its  first  appearance  about  the  year  1806, 
soon  after  the  constrained  departure  of  the  surveyor-general 
Don  Trodeau,  and  many  other  Spanish  ex-officials,  from  Louisi- 

*  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  129  and  137. 


A.D.  1795.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


489 


des- 
the 


ana,  in  1805.*  The  claim  passed  into  the  hands  of  Daniel 
Clarke  and  Daniel  Coxe ;  and,  subsequently,  many  other  per- 
sons claiming  through  them  have  been  Lrgely  interested  in  its 
confirmation  by  the  United  States.f 

Consequently,  for  the  next  forty  years  it  became  a  fruitful 
source  of  embarrassment  to  the  settlement  of  the  country,  as 
well  as  to  the  legislation  of  the  Federal  and  State  governments. 
By  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  the  question  of  title  was 
referred  to  the  decision  of  the  judicial  tribunals.  The  United 
States  District  Court  of  Louisiana,  having  adjudicated  the  case 
fully,  decided  certain  points  at  issue  in  favor  of  the  claimants ; 
but  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  in  its  final  decision, 
adjudged  and  decreed  the  claim  to  be  utterly  null  and  void.  J 

*  Seo  vol.  ii.,  book  v.,  chap,  xv.,  '■  Territory  of  OrleanB." 

t  Accordiug  to  Martin,  this  "  grant,"  as  originally  claimed  by  the  heirs-at-law,  or  bb- 
signecs  of  Maisou  Rouge,  comprised  only  thirty  thousand  acres;  subseijuently,  tho 
claim  set  up  comprised  more  than  two  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  acres,  and  extend- 
ed below  the  town  of  Monroe  (the  Spanish  post  of  Miro,  subsequently  the  post  of  Wash- 
ita) more  than  iiity  miles  by  tho  meanders  of  the  river. 

From  the  testunony  introduced  in  the  District  Court  in  1844-5,  it  appears  that  the 
inception  of  the  claim  dates  back  to  the  year  1802  or  1803,  about  three  years  after  the 
death  of  the  alleged  grantee,  and  at  a  period  when  many  of  the  Spanish  officials,  ap- 
prised of  the  approaching  termination  of  the  Spanish  dominion  in  Louisiana,  were  ac- 
tively employed  for  the  benefit  of  their  friends  and  favorites,  as  well  as  for  their  own 
pecuniary  advantage,  in  fabricating  land-titles  for  alleged  previous  grants  during  the 
legal  existence  of  the  Spanish  authority.  It  is  clearly  shown  that,  during  the  (piasi  in- 
terregmim,  tho  Spanish  officials  prepared  hundreds  of  spurious  Spanish  titles,  which 
wore  thrown  into  the  market  to  tho  highest  bidder /iw  what  they  n-ovld  bring,  and 
large  sums  of  money  from  time  to  time  had  been  raised  upon  them,  from  that  time  to  the 
final  adjudication  in  the  spring  of  1845 ;  each  new  claimant  or  adventurer  in  tlie  spec- 
ulation nominally  augmenting  the  value  of  the  general  claim,  because  he  increased  the 
influence  which  could  be  brought  to  operate  in  the  final  decision  of  the  question  of  con- 
firmation, whether  by  Congress  or  otherwise.  The  final  decision  demonstrates  that  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  is  entirely  beyond  the  reach  of  combined  wealth. 

i  To  test  the  principles  involved  in  the  main  question,  the  parties  claimant  mutually 
agreed  to  present  the  case  in  the  name  of  Richard  King,  a  purchaser,  holding  under 
Daniel  Coxe,  of  Philadelphia.  The  case  come  up  for  adjudication  in  New  Orleans  in 
1844  ;  fmally  disposed  in  1845. 

The  testimony  most  important  was  as  follows :  On  the  17th  of  March,  1795,  Gov- 
ernor Carondelet  and  the  intcndant,  Don  Francisco  de  Rendon,  contracted  with  the 
Marquis  de  Maison  Rouge,  a  poor  nobleman  of  France,  for  the  introduction  of  twenty 
or  thirty  French  families  for  a  stipulated  amount  of  money,  and  a  certain  quantity  of 
land  to  each  settler;  the  terms  were  approved  by  tho  king  on  the  14th  of  July  follow- 
ing ;  the  marquis,  neglecting  to  avail  himself  of  the  Uberal  terms,  settles  near  Miro  in 
Jane,  1798,  and  dies  late  in  1799.  In  the  year  1801  Louisiana  is  ceded  conditionally  to 
the  French  Republic,  but  is  not  formally  delivered  until  near  the  close  of  the  year  1803. 
For  several  montlis  previous  to  the  delivery  to  the  French  commissioner,  it  was  known 
in  Louisiana  and  the  United  States  that  it  had  been  ceded  to  the  United  States,  and 
required  only  the  formality  of  passing  through  the  French  commissioner,  being  already 
the  property  of  the  United  States.  The  Spanish  officers  hold  office  for  the  emolument 
pertaining  to  it,  and  for  the  opportunities  which  their  official  authority  gives  them  for 


490 


HISTORY    OP   TUB 


[UOOK   IV, 


A  similar  grant  is  alleged  to  have  been  made  to  tlie'l^aron 
de  IJastrop  the  year  after  the  grant  of  Maison  llouge,  and  un- 
der similar  conditions,  which,  in  like  manner,  were  never  com- 
plied with  on  his  part.*  One  was  also  made  the  same  year  to 
Julien  Dubuque,  upon  the  Upper  Mississippi,  for  nine  square 
leagues  above  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Macoketta  River.  This 
was  in  the  lieart  of  a  rich  mining  region,  and  comprised  what 
the  proprietor  termed  the  "  Mines  of  Spain." 

Tlie  De  Bastrop  claim,  like  that  of  Maison  Rouge,  has  never 
been  recognized  by  the  government  of  the  United  States. 

Among  the  events  of  this  year,  none  tended  so  much  to  dis- 
turb the  tranquillity  and  domestic  prosperity  of  the  province  as 
the  difficulty  of  controlling  the  slaves.     These  people,  inured 

accunitilntiiiii;  wcaltli,  directly  or  in<lircotly,  through  their  ofRcial  traiiRnctions,  &c. 
Again,  in  tho  first  mljiulication  of  Spanish  land-claims  nndcr  the  Federal  govenununt, 
the  validity  of  tho  claims  were  decided  hy  a  majority  of  a  Ixiard  of  three  commissioners, 
beibru  whom  oral  and  documentary  testimony  w-ns  adduced  to  estahlish  the  claim. 
Claims  not  contested,  of  course,  were  not  closely  investigated  ;  the  oath  of  one  or  nioro 
persons  established  a  claim  not  contcistcd.  Tho  Ma'son  llougo  claim  was  not  adjudi- 
cated hy  tho  conmiissioners,  who  conceived  it  bcyonil  their  jurisdiction.  This  claim 
was  owned  by  Louis  Bouligny  and  others,  the  alleged  heirs  at  law  or  assignees  of  Don 
Vincente  Fernandez  Fejeiro,  former  commandant  of  the  post  of  Washita  from  the  year 
1800  to  1804.  Louis  Bouligny  was  at  the  post  of  Washita  daring  the  years  IHOa  and 
180,3,  oud  was,  in  fact,  a  joint  partner  with  Fejeiro  in  the  Maison  Rouge  claim,  which 
turns  out  to  be  for  thirty  square  leagues  of  land.  During  these  same  years  tho  com- 
mandant, Fejeiro,  had  made  several  visits  to  tho  city  of  New  Orlcaus. 
The  title  papers  presented  by  tho  claimants  purjiorted  to  be, 

1.  A  "  plat  survey,  and  comers,"  without  any  proper  courses,  distances,  iVc,  mado 
and  certified  by  Don  Carlos  Laveau  Trudeau,  sur^'oyor-general  of  Louisiana,  bearing 
date  June  14th,  1797. 

2.  A  Spanish  patent,  or  titulo  in  formo,  dated  June  SOth,  1797,  and  calling  for  thirty 
superficial  teas^nes  of  land. 

On  the  part  of  the  United  States,  it  was  shown  that  the  Maison  llouge  claim,  if  au- 
thentic, could  not  exceed  four  thousand  acres  jirevious  to  the  death  of  the  grantee. 

John  Filhiol,  formerly  commandant  at  Fort  Miro  from  the  year  1783  to  1800,  "  and  an 
honest  man,"  had  no  knowledge  of  any  grant  or  survey  for  thirty  square  leagues  to  any 
person  or  persons  ;  nor  docs  he  believe  that  Maison  Rouge  ever  claimed  such  amount. 

It  is  charged  that  this  largo  amount  was  procured  in  fraud  by  said  Bouligny  and 
Fejeiro ;  that  the  plats  of  survey  ojul  the  documentary  evidence  are  false  and  franda- 
lent,  and  procured  after  the  death  of  Maison  Rouge. 

It  was  proven  that  tho  Spanish  governor-general  himself  had  no  authority  to  make 
such  a  grajit;  also,  that  the  said  "Don  Vincente  Fejeiro,  in  the  spring  of  1804,  of  his 
men  absolute  will,  made  a  number  of  sales  and  transfers  of  land  to  different  inhabitants, 
which  were  not  asked  from,  or  ever  granted  by  the  Spanish  government ;"  that  a  "  few 
days  before  the  arrival  of  the  American  officer  appointed  to  take  possession  of  Fort 
Miro,  this  same  Don  Vincente  Fejeiro  called  together  a  number  of  tlie  oldest  and  most 
respectable  inhabitants  of  his  district,  and  persuaded  tliem  to  make  these  abominable 
sales  and  transfers  to  each  other ;  however,  with  one  exception,  not  a  single  man  has 
attempted  to  use  them,  but  appeared  to  scorn  and  detest  tlie  vile,  intriguing  spirit  of 
him  who  seduced  them." — See  Printed  Case,  No.  99,  United  States,  Plaintiffs  in  Error, 
versus  D.  Coxe  and  R.  King,  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States. 

*  See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  132. 


A.D.  1795.] 


VALI-EY   OP   THE    MI38r89irri. 


401 


■  thirty 


to  toilmnd  hardships,  and  conscious  of  their  j)hysical  stren<^th, 
were  prune  to  rebel  against  the  feeble  authority  by  which  they 
were  surrounded,  and  upon  any  emergency  they  were  aj)t  to 
take  advantage  of  their  physical  power,  in  districts  where  the 
slave  population  was  five  times  as  numerous  as  the  whites. 

A  few  years  only  had  elapsed  since  the  horrible  tragedy  of 
St.  Domingo  had  transpired,  in  which  a  whole  race  had  assert- 
ed their  freedom,  and  had  expelled  or  exterminated  their  en- 
slavers. They  had  assumed  a  national  independence  by  their 
fearless  daring ;  should  the  slave  of  Louisiana  continue  to  sub- 
mit patiently  to  his  thraldom  ?  The  theme  was  one  which  re- 
quired only  the  reckless  intrepidity  of  a  desperate  leader  to 
rouse  the  minds  of  the  slaves  of  Louisiana  to  the  hopeless  ef- 
fort of  throwing  off  their  bondage.  Such  was  the  motive  which 
was  urged  by  a  few  daring  slaves  who  had  heard  of  the 
catastrophe  of  St.  Domingo.  A  conspiracy  was  put  on  foot,  in 
like  manner,  to  exterminate  the  white  po])ulation  in  Louisiana. 
The  plot  originated  upon  the  plantation  of  Julien  Poydras,  sit- 
uated upon  the  island  of  Point  Coupee,  while  the  proprietor 
was  absent  on  a  visit  to  the  United  States, 

The  insurgents  designed  to  murder  all  the  whites  of  the  par- 
ish indiscriminately ;  but  a  disagreement  among  the  leaders  as 
to  the  day  for  commencing  the  massacre  gave  occasion  for  the 
discovery  of  the  plot  before  it  had  entirely  matured ;  the  ex- 
ecution of  the  whole  conspiracy  was  therefore  defeated,  and 
promptly  suppressed.  The  militia  were  immediately  under 
arms,  and  were  soon  re-enforced  by  the  regular  troops.  The 
slaves  had  imbodied  and  made  a  furious  resistance.  Twenty- 
five  of  them  were  killed  before  they  were  subdued.  Upon  the 
surviving  ringleaders  the  full  rigor  of  the  law  was  enforced. 
In  the  subsequent  trials  Ally  were  found  guilty,  and  were  con- 
demned to  death.  Of  these,  nine  were  hung  in  different  parts  of 
the  parish  of  Point  Coupee ;  nine  others  were  taken  down  the 
river,  and  one  of  them  was  hung  and  left  suspended  at  each 
parish  church,  as  a  warning  to  others.  Many  of  the  conspira- 
tors, who  were  less  guilty,  were  severely  whipped  and  dis- 
charged.* Thus  terminated  the  first  fruits  of  the  St.  Domin- 
go tragedy  within  the  present  limits  of  the  United  States. 

Such  had  been  the  general  excitement  and  apprehension  of 
the  people  at  the  imminent  danger  from  which  they  had  escaped, 

*  The  insurrection  of  the  slaves  in  the  French  portion  of  St.  Domingo  took  place  on 


402 


HISTORY   OF   TUB 


[OOOK  IV. 


that  all  resolved  to  take  measures  for  preventing  a  recurrence 
of  similar  danger.  The  Cabaldo  soon  afterward  petitioned  the 
king  for  his  prohibition  against  the  further  introduction  of  ne* 
groes  from  any  portion  of  the  world.* 

During  the  year  1795,  the  authorities  of  Louisiana  experi- 
enced much  anxiety  in  regard  to  the  continued  advance  of  the 
western  settlements  of  the  United  States.  This  advance  was 
not  only  upon  the  region  of  the  Ohio ;  it  caused  a  direct  conllict 
of  jurisdiction  upon  the  immediate  bank  of  the  Lower  Missis- 
sippi. This  was  the  period  of  the  famous  "  Yazoo  speculation," 
under  the  impulse  of  which  the  State  of  Georgia  chartered  the 
"Mississippi  Company,"  and  had  erected  the  whole  settled 
portion  of  the  Natchez  District  into  the  "  County  of  Bourbon." 
Although  the  act  was  subsequently  repealed,  it  had  thrown  a 
large  number  of  Anglo-American  adventurers  within  the  Span- 
ish dominion.  It  was  about  this  time  that  his  Catholic  majesty 
issued  his  schedule  prohibiting  the  emigration  of  American  cit- 
izens to  Louisiana. 

About  the  same  time,  apprehending  hostilities  on  the  part  of 
the  United  States,  and  an  interruption  of  the  intercourse  with 
Upper  Louisiana  by  way  of  the  Mississippi  River,  the  Baron 
de  Carondelet  was  diligent  in  preparing  to  meet  the  emergen- 
cy. Additional  posts  were  established  upon  the  Upper  Mis- 
sissippi, and  at  several  points  below  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio. 
Also,  while  he  was  establishing  military  posts  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Ohio,  New  Madrid,  the  Echore  Margot,  Walnut  Hills,  and 
Natchez,  he  was  providing  for  another  route  to  Upper  Louisi- 
ana, entirely  west  of  the  Mississippi  River.  This  route  was 
by  way  of  the  Washita  River  and  Bayou  Barthelemy  to  the 
Arkansas  River,  and  thence  by  way.  of  White  River,  the  St. 
Francis,  and  its  great  eastern  tributary,  White  Water  Creek. 
By  this  route  he  had  discovered  that  a  practicable  water  com- 
munication, with  short  portages,  could  be  opened  from  Ne\v 
Orleans  to  the  settlements  of  Upper  Louisiana.f 

During  the  following  year,  the  intendant  of  the  province  was 

the  night  of  the  33d  of  Angost,  1791.  Hundreds  of  families  were  butchered  by  the  in 
fariated  negroes,  and  many  escaped  only  with  their  lives  on  board  the  ships  in  the  har- 
bors, or  fled  to  the  Spanish  part  of  the  island  for  protection.  Many  ultimately  came  to 
Louisiana  under  Spanish  dominion,  and  some  fled  to  the  United  States. — See  Marshall's 
Life  of  Washington,  vol.  v.,  p.  368,  Ist  ed.,  and  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  109.  Also,  Marbois's 
Louisiana,  p.  186-200.  *  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  135. 

t  This  route  had  been  explored  by  experienced  hunters  and  voyageurs,  showing  the 
Barthelemy  navigable  to  within  a  few  miles  of  Pine  Bluffs,  on  the  Arkansas. 


A.D.  1783.] 


VALLEY    or   THE    MISSMSirPI. 


403 


Don  Jiuin  IJcnoventura  Morales,  who  had  succeeded  Don  Hen- 
don.  Mornles  hud  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  otlico  with  u 
firm  determination  to  enforce  the  revenue  hiws  rigorously 
against  the  river  trade  from  the  United  States,  and  to  prohibit 
entirely  emigration  from  the  Western  States  to  Louisiana,  as 
directed  by  the  king's  schedule. 


CHAPTER  III. 

POLITICAL   RELATIONS    OP   LOUISIANA    WITH   THE    UNITED    STATErl, 
FROM    THE    TREATY    OF    1783    TO    THE   TREATY    OF   MADRID. — 

A.D.  1783  TO  1795. 

Argument. — Field  of  nntinnal  Controveriy  opened  by  Trcoty  of  1783. — Construction  of 
thp  Treaty  by  Spain. — Construction  by  United  States.— Navi^ntion  of  the  Miisisiip 
pi. — Claimed  by  tbo  United  States. — Spain  claims  the  exclusive  llight.— Dcnii-s  Uso 
of  the  River  to  the  western  People. — llestrictiuns  and  Duties  exacted  by  Spanish 
Autlioritios. — Embarrassed  Condition  oftho  western  People. — Jealous  Apprehensiiiiis 
of  Spain. — Condition  of  American  Settlements. — Indian  Tribes. — Policy  pursued  by 
Spain  toward  Kentucky.— Indignation  of  tlio  western  People. — Excitement  by  a  Hu- 
mored abandonment  oftho  Claim  of  the  United  States. — Change  of  Spanish  Polii^y. — 
Governor  Miro  relaxes  the  Restrictions  upon  tbo  western  Trade. — His  conciliatory 
Policy  to  western  People  in  1788-9. — Colonel  Wilkinson's  commercial  Enterprise  witli 
New  Orleans  suspected. — Western  People  become  reconciled  to  the  Spanish  Au- 
thorities.— Cumberland  Settlements. — "  Miro  District." — Emigration  from  Kentucky 
and  Cumberland  encouraged. — Grants  of  Land  in  1790. — Spanish  Intrigue  for  separa- 
ting the  Western  States. — Negotiations  oftho  F«}deral  Government. — Impatience  of 
the  western  People. — Disaffection  appears  in  Kentucky. — Negotiations  by  the  Fed- 
eral Government. — Spanish  Emissaries  embarrass  Negotiations  with  Creek  Indian.s, 
1789-1790. — "Southwestern  Territory"  organized.  —  Baron  Carondclet  commences 
his  Intrigue  with  Kentucky,  1792.— Creeks  instigated  to  Hostilities  by  Spanish  emis- 
saries.— Intrigues  of  M.  Genet,  the  French  Minister. — Threatened  Invasion  of  East 
Florida  from  Georgia. — Spain  procrastinates  Negotiotions  while  Carondelet  operates 
upon  tbo  western  People. — War  with  Spain  apprehended  by  President  Washington 
in  179-J. — Baron  Carondelet  apprehends  Danger  from  the  western  People.— Five  po- 
litical Parties  in  the  West.— Powers,  the  Spanish  emissary,  sent  to  Kentucky.— 
Views  of  the  Federal  Government. — It  restrains  the  western  Excitement. — Caron- 
delet renews  his  Mission  to  Kentucky  in  1795. — Gayoso  and  Powers  sent  to  nego- 
tiate with  the  Kentucky  Conspirators. — The  Mission  Fails. — Prospects  of  Disunion 
blasted. — Sebastian  visits  New  Orleans. — Overtures  from  the  Spanish  Court. — Thom- 
as Pinckney  Minister  to  Spain.— Treaty  of  Madrid  signed,  October  20th.— Stipulations 
in  the  Treaty  relative  to  Boundary  and  the  river  Trade.— The  Georgia  Bubble  - 
"Yazoo  Speculation."— Its  Effects  on  Louisiana. 

[AD.  1783.]  The  stipulations  in  the  treaty  of  1783,  between 
the  powers  of  Great  Britain  and  of  the  United  States,  France, 
and  Spain,  opened  a  wide  field  of  controversy  between  the  Fed- 
eral government  and  the  court  of  Madrid,  and  the  issue  was 
made  upon  two  principal  points,  deeply  affecting  the  interests  of 


494 


HISTORY    OP   TUB 


[book  IV. 


the  western  portion  of  the  United  States.  These  were,  first,  the 
right  of  the  western  people  to  the  free  no.vigation  and  trade  of 
the  Mississippi ;  and,  second,  the  establishment  of  the  southern 
boundary  of  the  United  States  under  the  provisions  of  the 
treaty.  This  controversy,  which  arose  soon  after  the  general 
peace,  was  continued  with  strong  animosity  on  both  sides,  and 
with  but  little  intermission,  for  nearly  twelve  years,  until  final- 
ly arranged  by  the  treaty  of  Madrid  in  1795.* 

By  the  treaty  signed  September  3d,  1783,  Great  Britain  re- 
linquished to  the  United  States  all  the  territory  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Mississippi,  ft-om  its  sources  to  the  31st  parallel  of  north 
latitude,  which  was  to  be  the  boundary  of  Floi-ida  on  the  north. 
With  this  relinquishment,  of  course,  was  ceded  all  the  pre- 
vious rights  of  Great  Britain  to  the  free  navigation  of  the  river 
to  its  mouth,  as  derived  from  previous  treaties  with  France  and 
Spain.  The  United  States,  therefore,  claimed  the  free  naviga- 
tion of  the  river  to  the  mouth. 

At  the  same  time,  Great  Britain  had  ceded  to  Spain  all  the 
Floridas,  comprising  all  the  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi, 
and  south  of  the  southern  limit  of  the  United  States.  Hence 
Spain  possessed  .all  the  territory  on  the  west  side  of  the  river, 
and  Florida  on  the  east ;  and  the  river,  for  the  last  three  hun- 
dred miles,  flowed  wholly  within  the  dominions  of  Spain.  His 
Catholic  majesty  therefore  claimed  the  exclusive  right  to  the 
use  of  the  river  below  the  southern  limit  of  the  United  States. 
Independent  of  this  principle,  Spain  refused  to  recognize  the 
southern  boundary  of  the  United  States  as  extending  further 
south  than  the  old  British  boundary  of  Florida,  which  was  an 
imaginary  line  extending  from  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo  due  east 
to  the  Chattahoochy,  or  in  latitude  thirty-two  degrees  twenty- 
eight  minutes  north.  As  the  treaty  of  1783,  in  the  cession  of 
Florida  to  Spain,  designated  no  boundaries,  but  presumed  that 
of  the  United  States,  Spain  demanded  Florida  with  its  British 
boundaries,  alleging  that  England,  by  the  treaty,  confirmed  to 
her  the  dominion  of  Florida,  which  was  then  in  her  possession 
as  a  conquered  province. 

*  Tho  first  nc!!;otiation  on  the  Bubject  was  opened  by  John  Jny,  on  the  part  of  tho 
United  States,  on  the  26tli  day  of  July,  1735,  with  the  Spanish  minister,  Don  Guardoqui. 
The  negotiation  was  protracted  in  a  very  unsatisfactory  manner  until  1789. — Sue  Amer- 
ican State  Papers,  vol.  x.,  p.  107,  Boston  edition. 

L>  1791,  negotiations  were  renewed  at  Malrid  by  William  Short  and  Willinm  Car- 
michacl,  charges  to  Mailrid  and  Paris,  dily  authorized  as  commissiunors,  December 
89d,  1791. 


IV. 


A.D.  1785.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISaiPPI. 


405 


[A.D.  1784.]  Yd  Spain  liad  been  a  party  to  the  triple 
treaty,  and  had  acquiesced  in  the  article  which  had  stipulated 
for  the  31st  parallel  as  the  southern  limit  of  the  United  States ; 
and  they  now  demanded  the  specified  boundary.  Nor  could  it 
be  doubted  that  both  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,  in  the 
treaty,  contemplated  the  31st  parallel  as  the  northern  limit  of 
Florida. 

In  reference  to  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi,  the 
United  States  asserted  a  natural  right,  independent  of  any 
claim  derived  through  Great  Britain.  The  American  jjcople 
occupied  and  exercised  dominion  over  the  whole  eastern  por- 
tion of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  comprising  all  the  country  drain- 
ed by  its  great  eastern  tributaries,  and  the  east  bank  as  low  as 
the  northern  limit  of  Florida.  This  gave  to  them  the  natural 
right  to  follow  the  current  of  their  rivers  to  the  sea,  as  estab- 
lished by  the  admitted  laws  of  nations. 

The  use  of  the  river  was  necessary  and  absolutely  indis- 
pensable to  the  western  settlements,  which  were  now  fast  ris 
ing  into  political  importance.  Situated  as  they  were,  no  pow- 
er on  earth  could  prevent  the  final  appropriation  of  the  river 
below  them  to  their  use,  when  their  numbers  should  enable 
them  to  maintain  their  rights  by  force. 

Such  were  the  questions  at  issue  between  Spain  and  the 
United  States ;  and  concession  on  the  part  of  the  former,  or 
war  on  the  part  of  the  latter,  was  the  only  alternative  by  which 
the  question  was  to  be  finally  decided. 

Spain  was  jealous  of  the  growing  power  and  the  increasing 
population  of  the  United  States.  The  western  country  wag 
rapidly  filling  up  with  a  hardy  and  restless  population,  which 
was  already  encroaching  upon  the  limits  of  the  Spanish  pi'ov- 
inces.  Their  political  principles,  too,  were  at  Wjar  with  the 
laws,  usages,  and  policy  of  Spain.  To  concede  the  free  navi- 
gation of  the  river  to  them  under  such  circumstances  would 
be  little  less  than  political  suicide ;  for  it  would  be  throwing 
open  the  flood-gates  for  a  political  inundation  of  Louisiana  and 
her  monarchical  institutions.  Such  were  the  views  of  the  two 
powers. 

[A.D.  1785.]  The  tide  of  immigration  was  already  setting 
strongly  to  the  West.  Kentucky  alone  contained  about  twelve 
thousand  inhabitants ;  and  within  the  present  limits  of  Tennes- 
see there  were  still  more  populous  settlements  upon  the  Hoi- 


406 


HISTORY   OP  THE 


[book  IV. 


ston  and  Clinch  Rivers,  and  which  were  advancing  upon  the 
Cumberland.  If  it  were  not  possible  for  Spain  to  check  the 
advance  of  this  tide,  it  certainly  was  impolitic  to  invite  it  into 
her  dominions.  Her  only  true  policy  was,  to  use  every  means 
in  her  power  to  embarrass  the  western  people  while  connected 
with  the  Federal  government,  and  at  the  same  time  to  hold  out 
strong  inducements  to  them  in  favor  of  a  separation  from  the 
Atlantic  States  and  an  alliance  with  Louisiana  under  the  Span- 
ish crown,  whereby  they  would  secure  for  themselves  all  the 
privileges  and  advantages  which  they  so  much  desired. 

Circumstances  were  favorable  to  such  a  policy.  The  settle- 
ments of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee  were  isolated,  cut  off  from 
the  populous  parts  of  the  Atlantic  States  by  a  vast  wilderness 
and  lofty  mountain  ranges,  which  virtually  removed  them  near- 
ly six  hundred  miles  from  their  respective  state  capitals.  They 
were  imperfectly  protected  from  Indian  hostility  by  the  Fed- 
eral government ;  they  were  without  the  advantages  of  trade 
and  commerce,  while  their  country  was  every  where  inter- 
sected by  navigable  streams,  and  abounded  in  all  the  valuable 
products  for  foreign  markets.  The  ties  on  one  side  were  weak, 
and  on  the  other  the  inducements  were  strong.  Under  these 
circumstances,  Spain  did  not  for  a  moment  hesitate  in  her 
course  of  policy,  believing  she  would  be  able,  ultimately,  to 
goad  the  western  people  into  a  separation  from  the  Federal 
Union. 

Previous  to  the  close  of  the  war  of  Independence,  the  set- 
tlements in  the  western  country  were  few  and  weak,  surround- 
ed by  powerful  tribes  of  hostile  Indians,  many  of  whom,  on  the 
south,  were  in  alliance  with  the  Spanish  provinces.  All  the  re- 
gion south  of  Tennessee  was  a  savage  wilderness,  and  Spain 
claimed  the  territory  as  a  part  of  Louisiana  and  Florida.  But 
since  the  close  of  the  war,  settlements  had  been  advancing  into 
the  West  in  a  manner  without  a  parallel.  The  whole  country 
appeared  in  motion  for  the  Mississippi.  The  United  States 
had  been  entering  into  treaties  of  peace  and  amity  with  Indian 
tribes  over  whom  Spain  claimed  to  exercise  protection  and 
sovereignty. 

The  Spanish  king  had  never  entertained  any  sincere  friend- 
ship for  the  American  people.  In  the  war  of  the  Revolution, 
his  Catiiolic  majesty,  yielding  to  the  solicitations  of  the  King 
of  France,  and  prompted  by  his  own  jealous  hostility  to  the 


A.D.  1780.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MlSSlSSim. 


497 


English  power,  had  consented  to  make  common  cause  with 
France  and  the  revolted  colonies  against  Great  Britain  ;  yet  it 
was  not  for  any  good  will  he  entertained  for  the  people  of  the 
colonies,  except  so  far  as  he  might  add  to  his  own  dominions, 
by  humbling  his  powerful  rival  and  repossessing  the  Floridas. 
Although  he  had  been  successful,  and  had  subjugated  Florida, 
he  appeared  to  regret  the  aid  which  had  been  incidentally  ren- 
dered to  the  United  States,  which  now  seemed  to  presage  a 
more  formidable  obstacle  to  the  peace  and  integrity  of  the 
Spanish  provinces  than  the  power  of  England  herself.  Hence 
the  extreme  reluctance  with  which  his  Catholic  majesty  rati- 
fied the  treaty  of  1783,  which  confirmed  the  independence  and 
defined  the  boundaries  of  the  new  power.* 

For  the  whole  West  there  was  but  one  great  outlet  to  the 
ocean,  and  that  was  through  the  province  of  Louisiana  and  by 
way  of  the  port  of  New  Orleans.  This  circumstance  alone 
must,  o{  necessity,  at  length  lead  to  difficulties  between  the 
Spanish  authorities  and  the  people  of  the  United  States.  In- 
dications of  this  were  already  too  plain  to  be  mistaken.  The 
western  people  had  already  begun  to  demand  as  a  right  the 
free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi,  the  great  river  of  Louisiana. 

[A.D.  1786.]  Three  years  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty 
of  1783,  Spain  occupied  both  banks  of  the  Mississippi  below 
the  Ohio,  and  no  less  than  four  Spanish  posts  confirmed  the 
military  occupation  of  the  eastern  bank,  and  the  governor  and 
intendant  of  Louisiana  were  required  to  enforce  the  laws  of 
Spain,  in  the  collection  of  heavy  duties  on  all  imports  by  way 
of  the  river  from  the  Ohio  region.  These  duties  were  arbi- 
trary, and  often  extremely  heavy  and  unjust ;  but  an  excise  of- 
ficer, supported  by  a  military  force,  was  stationed  at  every 
commandant's  headquarters  on  the  river  to  enforce  the  collec- 
tion of  the  revenue.  Every  boat  descending  the  river  was 
compelled  to  make  land,  and  submit  to  the  revenue  exactions, 
with  only  such  relaxations  and  modifications  as  the  com- 
mandant saw  fit  to  admit.  All  violations  of  these  arbitrary 
regulations  and  restrictions  thus  imposed  were  met  with  seiz- 
ure and  imprisonment,  and  often  by  confiscation  of  the  whole 
cargo  to  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  officers  of  the  crown,  who  val- 
ued their  offices  in  proportion  to  the  profit  derived  from  them.* 

*  See  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington,  vol.  i.,  p.  406. 

t  The  S|)nnish  authorities  in  Louisiana  suIJom  failed  to  use  their  ot&cet  and  author 

Vol.  L— I  I 


408 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book   IV. 


This  system  of  exaction  upon  the  trade  of  the  western  peo- 
ple became  exceedingly  oppressive  under  the  arbitrary  power 
of  the  excise  men;  many  acts  of  oppression  and  unjust  exac- 
tion would  of  course  take  place  from  time  to  time,  and  the  west- 
ern boatmen  had  not  been  well  schooled  in  submission  to  ar- 
bitrary rule.  Many,  disdaining  to  submit  to  the  arrogant  de- 
mands of  the  Spanish  officials,  were  from  time  to  time  exposed 
to  their  official  resentment,  which  occasionally  ended,  not  with 
a  mere  temporary  delay  and  embarrassment,  bui  sometimes 
brought  upon  the  offender  the  penalty  of  confiscation  of  prop- 
erty, and  a  vexatious  imprisonment.  Repeated  occurrences 
of  tlup.  kind  soon  spread  great  indignation  among  the  trading 
portion  of  the  western  people,  and  made  ihem  impatient  for 
that  revenge  which  might  be  inflicted  by  a  military  invasion  of 
Louisiana  and  the  capture  of  New  Orleans,  which  would  give 
them  the  control  of  the  whole  commerce  of  the  river. 

As  early  as  1785,  the  Federal  government,  through  John 
.Tay,  their  commissioner,  opened  a  negotiation  with  the  Span- 
ish minister,  Don  Guardoqui,  relative  to  these  embarrassments 
to  the  prosperity  of  the  western  people  ;  but  the  Spanish  minis- 
ter, in  behalf  of  his  government,  persisted  in  his  refusal  to  con- 
cede any  of  the  points  in  controversy,  and,  after  a  fruitless  ne- 
gotiation of  twelve  months,  Mr.  Jay  had  almost  consented  to 
waive  the  right  of  he  western  people  to  the  free  navigation  of 
the  Mississippi  /or  fwen^y  years,  provided  Spain  would  concede 
their  claims  at  the  expiration  of  that  period. 

[A.D.  1787.]  It  was  about  the  close  of  the  year  1786  that 
the  rumor  obtained  currency  in  the  West  that  the  Federal  gov- 
ernment, regardless  of  the  interests  of  the  western  people,  was 

ity  fur  their  private  gain  and  cninlumcnt,  with  but  few  scniples  for  the  impartial  rights 
of  the  crown  in  coiupetition  with  their  own  pecuniary  interests.  The  estimate  of 
Spanish  integrity  in  the  discharge  of  their  official  duties  varied  but  little,  in  the 
time  of  Governor  Miro,  from  the  account  given  of  it  by  Daniel  Clarke,  the  Ameri- 
can consul,  tWL'ntj--iive  years  afterward,  in  1803.  He  says,  "the  auditors  of  war,  and 
the  assessors  of  government  and  intendancy,  have  always  been  corrupt,  and  to  them 
only  must  be  attributed  the  mal-administration  of  justice ;  for  the  governor  and  other 
judges,  who  are  unac(|uainted  with  the  law,  seldom  dare  to  act  contran*'  to  the  o[)inions 
they  give.  Hence,  when  the  au<litor  or  assessor  was  bribed,  suitors  had  to  complain  of 
delays  and  infamous  decisions.  But  all  the  officers  will  plunder  when  the  opportunity 
offers ;  they  are  all  venal.  A  bargain  can  be  made  with  the  governor,  the  intcndant, 
a  judge,  or  a  collector,  and  all  others  down  to  a  constable.  If  ever  an  officer  be  dis- 
pleased at  the  offer  of  money,  if  is  not  because  it  is  offered,  but  because  circumstances 
compel  him  to  refuse.  Instead  of  spuming  the  man  who  offers  a  bribe,  he  looks  on  him 
with  additional  favor,  which  encourages  him  to  make  a  second  offer  when  a  better  op- 
portunity may  present  for  its  acceptance. — See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  210. 


L 


A.D. 


1788.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


490 


about  to  conclude  a  treaty  with  the  Spanish  minister,  in  which 
the  United  States  wei'e  to  abandon  their  claim  to  the  free  navi- 
gation of  the  Mississippi  /or  twenty  years,  to  conciliate  the  good 
will  of  Spain.  The  very  possibility  of  abandoning  their  right- 
ful claims  produced  the  highest  degree  of  excitement  in  all  the 
western  settlements,  which  not  only  endangered  the  safety  of 
Louisiana,  but  caused  great  anxiety  to  the  Federal  govern- 
ment itself  for  several  years  subsequently. 

The  indignation  of  the  western  people  had  been  fully  arous- 
ed, and  they  had  determined  no  longer  to  submit  to  the  vacil- 
lating negotiation  of  the  Federal  government,  which  could  for 
a  moment  hesitate  to  urge  the  immediate  recognition  of  their 
rights.  The  feelings  of  indignation  were  expended  in  a  deter- 
mination to  plan  a  military  invasion  of  Louisiana,  which  should 
compel  Spain  to  concede  their  demands  without  delay. 

This  state  of  things  had  continued  nearly  a  year,  when  Gov- 
ernor Miro  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office.  Perceiving 
the  tendency  of  the  policy  heretofore  pursued  by  the  govern- 
ment of  Louisiana  toward  the  American  people,  he  resolved 
to  adopt  a  different  course  during  his  administration.  With 
the  consent  and  approbation  of  the  Spanish  minister,  Don  Guar- 
doqui,  resident  at  the  seat  of  the  Federal  government,  he  re- 
solved to  relax  the  import  and  transit  duties  on  the  I'iver  trade 
from  the  western  settlements.  He  accordingly  granted  the 
privilege  of  free  trade  to  certain  persons,  and  relaxed  many  ot 
the  oppressive  restrictions  heretofore  imposed  upon  Americans 
visiting  the  province  of  Louisiana.  Among  these  were  the 
privileges  granted  to  Colonel  James  Wilkinson,  between  the 
years  1787  and  1790,  of  a  free  trade  in  tobacco,  flour,  and  oth- 
er western  productions,  besides  the  privilege  of  introducing 
several  hundreds  of  American  families  into  Louisiana  and  the 
West  Florida  districts.* 

[A.D.  1788.]  Scarcely  one  year  had  elapsed  after  the  ex- 
tension of  these  indulgences  to  the  western  people,  when  Miro 
began  to  experience  great  opposition  to  his  policy  from  the 
Spanish  minister,  who  had  failed  to  realize  the  pecuniary  ad- 
vantages which  he  had  anticipated  from  this  state  of  things.f 
The  same  opposition  was  also  experienced  from  the  intendant. 


*  See  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  p.  154-170. 

t  Don  Guardoqui  retired  from  his  mission  at  tlie  close  of  the  old  Confederation,  in 
1789. 


500 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  IV. 


Don  Navarro,  who  had  been  influenced  by  the  minister  to  re- 
quire a  rigid  execution  of  the  revenue  hxws  and  regulations. 
The  opposition  from  the  latter  quarter,  however,  ceased  with 
the  close  of  the  year  1788,  when  Navarro  retired  to  Spain, 
leaving  Governor  Miro,  by  the  king's  command,  invested  with 
authority  to  discharge  the  duties  of  intendant  in  addition  to  his 
other  prerogatives.  This  new  arrangement  tended  greatly  to 
calm  the  anxious  excitement  among  the  western  people,  who 
esteemed  Governor  Miro  as  their  friend  and  benefactor. 

[A.D.  1789.]  Colonel  Wilkinson,  with  an  eye  to  his  individ- 
ual interests,  had  correctly  represented  the  western  people,  and 
had  entered  into  arrangements  with  Governor  Miro  for  the 
exclusive  supply  of  tobacco  from  Kentucky  for  the  Mexican 
market ;  and  he  continued,  for  several  years  after  1787,  to  send 
his  annual  cargoes  of  tobacco  and  other  western  produce  to 
the  New  Orleans  market.  In  1789  he  received  from  New  Or- 
leans a  large  amount  of  specie,  estimated  at  ten  thousand  Span- 
ish dollars,  shipped  to  him  at  Danville,  in  Kentucky,  for  the 
ostensible  purpose  of  purchasing  tobacco  for  his  engagements 
with  Governor  Miro.  But  suspicions  were  awakened  in  Ken- 
tucky, and  many  believed  that  Wilkinson  was  in  the  secret  serv- 
ice of  Spain,  for  the  purpose  of  winning  over  the  western  peo- 
ple to  the  Spanish  dominion,  and  that  he  received  an  annual 
pension  from  the  Spanish  king,  concealed  under  commercial 
remittances  made  to  him  on  account  of  his  tobacco  monopoly. 
Unfortunately,  subsequent  developments  were  not  calculated 
to  remove  this  impression. 

[A.D.  1791.]  Until  the  year  1791,  the  same  mild  and  con- 
ciliatory policy  was  maintained  by  Governor  Miro  toward  the 
western  people,  not  only  of  Kentucky,  but  also  those  on  the  Hol- 
ston  and  Cumberland  Rivers,  in  the  Southwestern  Territory, 
and  also  to  those  of  Western  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  on 
the  Monongahela.  Many  of  the  most  fiery  spirits  became  rec- 
onciled to  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  entertained  for  Miro 
himself  an  affectionate  regard.  The  prevalence  of  these  feel- 
ings among  the  people  on  the  Cumberland  River  was  fully 
evinced  in  designating  one  of  their  judicial  districts  by  the 
name  of  "  Miro  District."* 

Many  of  the  people  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  although 

*  See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  110. 


A.D.  1791.] 


VALLEY  OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


501 


satisfied  with  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  pleased  with  the 
commercial  privileges  extended  by  Governor  Miro,  were  un- 
willing to  submit  to  the  species  of  vassalage  implied  by  the 
manner  in  which  the  river  commerce  was  enjoyed.  They 
claimed  all  these  .idvantages,  not  as  special  favors,  but  as  com- 
mon and  indefeasible  rights. 

To  allay  anxiety  on  that  point,  indulgences  were  extended 
to  emigrants  desirous  of  settling  in  Louisiana,  and  various  in- 
ducements were  held  out  to  those  who  were  willing  to  submit 
to  the  Spanish  dominion.  Grants  of  land  were  promised  to 
such  as  desired  to  make  their  permanent  residence  in  Louisi- 
ana, while  intimations  were  secrptly  disseminated  among  the 
unsuspecting  people  that  the  Spanish  government  would  grant 
to  them  as  a  community  every  commercial  advantage  and  priv- 
ilege which  could  be  desired,  provided  they  were  disconnected 
from  the  Federal  government  east  of  the  mountains.  The 
Spanish  minister  resident  in  the  United  States  had  been  bold 
enough  to  declare  unequivocally  to  his  confidential  correspond- 
ents, that  unless  the  western  people,  and  especially  those  of 
Kentucky,  would  declare  themselves  independent  of  the  Federal 
government,  and  establish  for  themselves  an  independent  form 
of  government,  Spain  never  would  allow  them  the  free  navi- 
gation of  the  Mississippi :  "  But  upon  those  terms  he  was  au- 
thorized, and  would  engage  to  open  the  navigation  of  the  river, 
for  the  exportation  of  their  products  and  manufactures,  on 
terms  of  mutual  advantage."*  The  same  intimations  were 
zealously  disseminated  among  the  people  of  all  the  western 
settlements  by  persons  supposed  to  have  been  secretly  in  the 
employment  and  pay  of  the  Governor  of  Louisiana. 

Such  were  the  conflicting  interests  and  feelings  of  the  west- 
ern people,  and  the  secret  designs  of  the  Spanish  government : 
such  were  the  intrigues' and  plans  of  the  Spanish  governor  to 
effect  a  separation  of  the  western  people  from  the  Federal 
Union,  by  alienating  them  from  their  allegiance,  and  winning 
over  their  feelings,  no  less  than  their  interests,  to  the  dominion 
of  Spain.  Many  were  seduced  from  the  Federal  government, 
but  a  greater  number  remained  firm  in  their  adherence  to  the 
Union. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  subject  had  been  one  of  deep  interest 

*  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  177,  &c. 


502 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[nooK  rv. 


to  the  Federal  government.  Congress,  under  the  old  confed- 
eration, had  early  brought  the  subject  before  the  Spanish  cab- 
inet. In  the  year  1787,  that  body  had  directed  the  Secretary 
of  Foreign  Aflairs  to  open  a  negotiation  with  the  Spanish  min- 
ister resident  in  the  United  States,  and  to  press  upon  his  seri- 
ous attention  the  danger  of  an  interruption  of  the  good  under- 
standing existing  between  the  two  countries.  He  was  also  in- 
structed and  "  required  expressly  to  stipulate  for  both  the  ter- 
ritory of  the  United  States,  agreeably  to  the  boundary  of  1783, 
and  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi^  from  its  source  to  its 
mouth." 

In  the  negotiation  which  ensued,  Guardoqui,  the  Spanish  min- 
ister, replied,  that  the  Spanish  king  "  never  would  permit  any 
foreign  power  to  use  that  river,  both  banks  of  which  belonged 
to  him."* 

[A.D.  1792.]  After  fruitless  attempts  at  negotiation  for  sev- 
eral years,  all  further  eflbrts  were  suspended ;  as  Guardoqui, 
having  refused  to  consent  to  any  treaty  whatever  on  the  sub- 
ject which  would  require  Spain  to  acknowledge  in  the  United 
States  any  right  to  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  River, 
had  retired  to  Spain. 

The  great  mass  of  the  western  people,  in  the  mean  time,  be- 
came impatient  of  the  restraints  and  exactions  which  had  been 
again  imposed  upon  their  commerce,  and  were  highly  exas- 
perated against  the  authorities  of  Louisiana.  The  population 
upon  all  the  great  tributaries  of  the  Ohio,  next  the  mountains, 
had  greatly  multiplied  ;  and  the  augmented  agricultural  prod- 
ucts demanded  an  outlet  adequate  to  the  supply.  On  the  east, 
commerce  and  export  were  entirely  cut  off  by  lofty  ranges  of 
mountains.  On  the  west,  the  great  branches  of  the  Ohio  gave 
them  a  direct  and  easy  transportation  from  their  doors  to  the 
Mississippi,  and  by  that  river  to  every  part  of  the  habitable 
globe.  In  fact,  the  Mississippi  was  the  natural  outlet  for  the 
whole  West,  and  yet  it  was  held  and  controlled  by  a  power 
which  claimed  exclusive  navigation  upon  it,  because  it  held  pos- 
session of  the  mouth. 

Many,  in  their  impatience  at  the  privations  imposed  upon  the 
river  commerce,  censured  the  tardiness  of  the  Federal  govern- 
ment and  its  want  of  energy,  because  Spain  was  not  required 

*  Jay's  Life,  vol.  i.,  p.  935,  836. 


A.D.  1792.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


503 


imperatively  to  concede  the  right  of  free  navigation  to  the  peo- 
ple of  the  United  States.  Some,  prompted  more  hy  interest 
than  honorable  independence,  began  to  devise  means  of  concil- 
iating the  favor  of  Spain,  at  the  expense  of  patriotism  at  liome. 
They  became  disaffected  toward  the  policy  of  the  Federal  gov- 
ernment, because  its  negotiation  had  failed  to  secure  to  them 
their  rights ;  and,  despairing  of  more  efficient  measures  by  the 
government,  began  to  look  to  the  Spanish  authorities  them- 
selves for  relief.  This  relief  had  been  secretly  promised  to 
them  by  men  who  were  in  the  interest  of  Spain. 

In  the  forcible  language  of  General  Wilkinson,  such  had  been 
the  precarious  condition  of  the  western  settlements,  that  they 
seemed  to  labor  under  every  disadvantage,  political  as  well  as 
natural ;  "  open  to  savage  depredations,  exposed  to  the  jealous- 
ies of  the  Spanish  government,  unprotected  by  the  old  confed- 
eration, and  denied  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi,  the  only 
practical  channel  by  which  the  productions  of  their  labor  could 
find  a  market,"  could  it  be  a  matter  of  surprise  if  they  did  re- 
luctantly consent  to  abandon  country  and  friends  for  relief? 

But  the  Federal  government  had  not  been  neglectful  of  their 
interests,  and  was  now  prepared  for  more  vigorous  negotia- 
tions. In  the  month  of  September,  1788,  a  resolution  of  Con- 
gress had  declared  "  that  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi 
is  a  clear  and  essential  right  of  the  United  States,  and  that  the 
same  ought  to  be  considered  and  supported  as  such."  To  this 
declaration  a  response  was  gladly  echoed  from  the  whole  West, 
and  from  all  the  Southern  States.  The  negotiation  to  this  effect 
had  been  pressed  under  the  old  confederation  without  effect, 
until  the  Spanish  minister  retired  to  Spain  upon  the  change  of 
the  Federal  government.  The  president,  under  the  new  con- 
federation, had  kept  up  a  constant  negotiation  through  the 
American  ministers,  Mr.  Carmichael  and  Mr.  Short,  resident 
at  Madrid.  These  ministers  had  been  charged  specially  to  ne- 
gotiate for  the  cession  of  West  Florida  near  the  Mississippi,  and 
the  Island  of  New  Orleans,  including  the  city  of  New  Orleans, 
and  the  whole  eastern  bank  of  the  river  to  the  sea,  which  were 
to  be  obtained  at  any  cost,  provided  the  free  use  of  the  river 
through  Louisiana  could  not  be  obtained  otherwise.* 


"  For  an  account  of  this  inatmctiou,  see  Marshall's  Life  of  Wasliington,  vol.  v.,  p.  274 
first  edition. 


504 


IIiaTf)UY    OK    THE 


[book  IV. 


But  the  Kin;;^  of  Spain  little  thoujtjflit  of  givinf^  up  the  empire 
of  the  Mississippi.  In  17H3,  he  had,  with  great  rehictance, 
given  his  assent  to  the  treaty  establishing  the  western  and 
southe/n  boundary  of  the  United  States,  but  with  no  intention 
of  surrendering  to  them  the  territory  which  had  been  claimed 
us  a  part  of  his  dominions  east  of  the  Mississippi.  The  S|)anish 
minister,  in  his  negotiation  on  the  subject,  had  pretended  to 
deny  any  right  accruing  to  the  United  States,  east  of  the  Lower 
Mississippi,  in  virtue  of  the  treaty  of  1783,  because,  up  to  the 
declaration  of  independence,  Great  Britain  had  prohil)ited  the 
settlement  of  lands  west  of  the  sources  of  the  Atlantic  streams. 
To  sustain  this  position,  he  referred  to  the  king's  proclamation 
of  1703,  prohibiting  all  settlements  west  of  the  mountains,  and 
which  had  been  cited  by  the  last  royal  governor  of  Virginia, 
to  bar  the  claims  of  the  Transylvania  Company  in  1770.* 
Acting  under  this  assumption,  and  presuming  the  Indian  tribes 
to  be  independent  nations,  possessing  the  rightful  sovereignty 
of  the  country  occupied  by  them,  Spain  lost  no  opportunity,  by 
means  of  agents  and  emissaries,  to  prevent  the  sale  and  trans- 
fer of  territory  from  the  Indians  to  the  United  States.  Thus, 
while  Spain,  by  negotiation,  procrastinated  any  definite  under- 
standing with  the  United  States  relative  to  the  claims  under 
the  treaty  of  1783,  she  determined  to  check  the  advance  of  the 
settlements,  and  prevent  the  origin  of  any  other  title  to  the 
country  through  the  Indian  right. f 

[A.D.  1793.]  The  Cumberland  settlements  were  now  in- 
cluded within  the  limits  of  the  "  Southwestern  Territory,"  un- 
der the  jurisdiction  of  the  Federal  government,  protected  by 
military  posts  and  an  organized  militia.  This  advance  of  the 
Federal  jurisdiction,  extending  to  the  Mississippi  L.  ,  placed 
the  people  of  Tennessee,  who  were  on  the  head  waters  of  the 
Holston  and  Clinch  Rivers,  and  upon  the  Cumberland  River, 
beyond  the  influence  of  Spanish  intrigue  and  allurements ;  but 
Kentucky  was  still  a  district  attached  to  the  State  of  Virginia, 
and  holding  no  separate  political  relation  to  the  United  States ; 
and  her  citizens  were  impatient  of  a  change  in  the  form  of 
their  government  which  would  release  them  from  the  condition 
of  a  mere  colony  of  Virginia.     This  stite  of  things  stimulated 


•  See  book  iii.,  chap  iii.,  of  this  work,  near  the  close  of  the  chapter,  i.  e.,  the  Transyl- 
vania purchase  by  Henderson  and  Co. 
t  Sec  book  v.,  chapter  viii.,  of  this  work,  viz.,  "  Indian  Relations,"  &c. 


A.I).  i7{)n.] 


VAI.LEV    OF    THE    MlSSISrtli'I't. 


fiOG 


the  Clovernor  of  Louisiana  to  renew  the  intri^'ues  ol'C  Juiinlo(|ui 
for  (leta(;hin<,'  Kentucky  from  the  Fedenil  Union,  hy  hitldini,'  out 
stroni,'  in(hicements  for  un  alliance  with  Louisiana  under  tlio 
protection  of  Si)ain. 

Tlie  IJaron  de  Carondelet,  havinfj  succeeded  Miro  as  Clov- 
ernor of  Louisiana,  entered  u|)on  the  duties  of  liis  otlice  early 
in  January,  1792.  The  condition  of  tl:o  western  country,  and 
the  unsettled  state  of  j)olitical  feelin<,'  ainon<^  the  people,  not 
only  of  Kentucky,  but  also  of  Western  Pennsylvania,  encour- 
aged him  to  hope  for  ultimate  success  in  accomplishing'  an  ob- 
ject which  was  greatly  desired  by  8|)ain.  Hence  he  entered, 
with  great  ardor  and  perseverance,  upon  a  regular  and  sys- 
tematic plan  of  operations  for  this  purpose.  Nor  did  he  cease 
his  operatiijns  or  despair  of  success  until  after  the  fmal  ratifi- 
cation of  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  nearly  three  years  afterward. 
The  intrigues  of  the  baron  and  his  emissaries  were  dire(;ted  to 
Kentucky  perseveringly,  until  nearly  three  years  after  that 
state  had  been  admitted  as  an  independent  member  of  the 
Federal  Union.* 

In  the  mean  time,  he  had  succeeded  in  sowing  llie  seeds  of 
disaffection  widely  through  the  western  settlements.  Many 
were  induced  to  favor  the  views  and  plans  of  the  Spanish  gov- 
ernor, and  desired  a  separation  from  the  Atlantic  States. 

Nor  were  the  intrigues  and  operations  of  the  Baron  confined 
to  the  white  settlements  alone.  Still  further  to  arrest  the  ad- 
vance of  the  white  population  in  the  "  Southwestern  Territo- 
ry," in  a  region  over  which  the  Federal  jurisdiction  had  been 
formally  extended,  emissaries  had  been  sent  to  the  Creek  In- 
dians in  the  western  parts  of  Georgia  to  alienate  them  from 
their  alliance  with  the  United  States.  A  treaty  of  peace  and 
friendship  had  been  concluded  by  the  United  States,  in  the 
year  1790,  with  M'Gillivray  and  other  principal  Creek  chiefs, 
stipulating  for  a  cession  of  territory  and  the  establishment  of  a 
line  of  demarkation,  to  be  surveyed  and  marked  the  following 
year ;  but  before  the  time  for  running  the  line  of  demarkation 
had  arrived,  M'Gillivray,  prompted  by  Spanish  intrigue,  had 
been  induced  to  disavow  the  treatv,  and  to  forbid  the  estab- 
lishment  of  a  line  of  demarkation.  In  the  mean  time,  he  had 
been  taken  into  the  Spanish  service,  with  the  rank  and  pay  of 
a  brigadier-general.     Through  his  influence  a  war  party  had 

•  See  book  v.,  chap,  vi.,  "  Political  Condition  of  Kentucky,"  i5cc. 


500 


IIIMTOIIY    OF    Tim 


[nnoK  IV. 


been  formed  in  the  f'reok  tintion,  and  hostilities  lind  been  com- 
meiKMMl  M^niiist  the  IVontier  settlements  on  tlio  Holston  luid 
Cumhcrliind  Rivers.  A  hostile  incursion  of  ('reeks  and  ('her- 
okees  had  actually  penetrated  the  Holston  settlement,  and  in- 
vested the  stockade  at  Knoxville.* 

This  state  of  Indian  hostility  was  known  to  have  proceeded 
from  Sj)anish  intrigue  in  Florida  and  Louisiana,  and  the  peo- 
ple of  the  "  Southwestern  Territory"  became  more  than  ever 
clamorous  for  the  invasion  of  Louisiana  hy  the  Federal  govern- 
ment. The  Creeks  were  not  reduced  to  peace  until  after  the 
victory  of  General  Wayne  over  the  northwestern  Indians,  in 
the  autumn  of  1794,  when,  ap|)rohending  a  similar  visit,  they 
made  overtures,  and  entered  into  a  treaty  of  peace  and  friend- 
ship with  the  Federal  government. 

[A.D.  1794.]  The  collisiim  of  interests  between  the  people 
of  the  western  country  and  the  authorities  of  Spain  in  Louisi- 
ana soon  became  more  aj)parent,  and  Spain  began  seriously  to 
apprehend  an  invasion  of  Louisiana  from  the  United  States. 
To  stir  up  this  state  of  feeling  more  effectually  against  Spain, 
emissaries  from  France  were  now  in  the  United  States,  all 
anxious  to  wrest  Louisiana  from  the  Spanish  crown,  and  to 
place  it  again  under  the  dominion  of  Republican  France.f 
Their  eff*orts  to  this  efl^ect,  through  the  people  of  the  United 
States,  although  instigated  and  directed  by  the  French  minis- 
ter, M.  Genet,  were  promptly  arrested  by  the  authorities  of  the 
United  States.J 

Under  the  influence  of  the  French  minister,  M.  Genet,  and 
his  emissaries  in  the  United  Slates,  a  strong  French  party  had 
been  formed,  not  only  in  the  Western  States,  but  also  in  the 
South.  The  frontiers  of  Georgia  were  lighted  up  with  a  flame 
of  enthusiasm  for  the  invasion  of  East  Florida,  while  the  west- 
ern people  were  preparing  to  invade  Louisiana  and  West  Flor- 
ida from  the  Ohio  region.  At  the  head  of  the  "  French  Le- 
gion," in  Georgia,  for  the  invasion  of  Florida,  was  General 
George  Clark,  of  Georgia,  a  man  of  strong  passions,  of  violent 
antipathies  against  the  English,  and  of  warm  partialities  for  the 

*  See  book  v.,  chap,  vii.,  "  Indian  Hostilities  and  early  Settlements  in  Southwestern 
Territory."  t  See  book  iv.,  chaji.  ii.,  of  this  work. 

t  The  reader  will  find  an  interesting  account  of  the  character,  tumpcranient,  and  re- 
ception of  the  French  minister,  M.  Genet,  in  the  United  States,  in  1793,  in  Marshall's 
Life  of  Washington,  vol.  v.,  p.  409-412,  first  edition.  Also,  bis  oflScial  acts  and  in- 
solence, idem,  p.  413-450.  Also,  his  intrigues  with  the  southern  and  western  people, 
idem,-  p.  452,  &c. 


A.I).  1701.] 


VAI.I.KV    OF    TIIK    MIHHIHrtll'PI. 


607 


French.*  It  was  uii(lerst(n»<l  tlmt  M.  (Jetiet  was  to  l)e  n|»|)(Mnt- 
e<l  iniijor-^eneral,  uiid  to  Hervo  as  romiimiHlcr-in-ftliict".  Tliu 
Creek  Indians  were  to  be  enlisted  in  the  c^anse  hy  a^'ents  sent 
into  the  nation.  Sn(;h  was  the  state  of  atlairs  on  the  (Jeor^'ia 
frontier,  that  the  Sjtanish  ^'overnor  of  Kast  Florichi,  alarmed  at 
the  threatening  aspect,  had  made  his  complaint  to  the  (iovern- 
<n*  of  Georgia,  who,  on  the  Tith  of  March,  171M,  had  issued  his 
proclamation  against  tlie  unlawful  enterprise.! 


*  Amcric-ai)  State  I'apori,  Bonton  mlition,  vol.  iii.,  |>.  Q30. 

t  Tlio  lu'tivd  itiito  of  liogtili-  |irc|>iiriitioii«  nnuinut  Kniit  Florida  inny  lio  inferred  from 
tilt'  dispatflioi  of  till!  olBrfr*  of  the  Uiiili'd  HtrMoii  nrmy  to  tliu  War  I)ii|mrtiiii'nt.  Mnjor 
Ilunry  (}iiitlicr,  coiiiniHiidaiit  of  tliu  Federnl  troo[tN  on  tlio  St.  Mnry'8,  diipntcliod  n  let- 
tur,  datcil  A|iril  i:itli,  IT!)),  to  tiiu  (lo|i'irtnu!nt,  .;  itii  infonno.iou  tluit  tliu  Kri'in'h  hud 
many  frioiulH  in  Oi'ori,'iii,  "id  tlmt  tluir  prcparnt'oni  fo  t'c  inviixion  of  Florida  wero 
active  ;  tlmt  tlic  Freti-'li  nicHip-of-war  L  ui  Caiia»  il  eii,''ti;v  ii  ^ftiim,  rocontly  arrived  from 
CliarloBton,  with  two  !"i'idred  r  ''ii  rn  ^h^Kti',,  laoatl^  }.' .  u  h,  and  ore  ronipany  of  in- 
fantry, and  tlmt  iho  waa  then  \yi-^  wit i  In  i:iuiiK»-t  i:li<  i  of  the  fort,  at  anchor.  They 
rejiort  tliirtoun  sail,  etpiolly  laI^'t  and  'viU  >iupp!;i(l,  that  nro  bouu  to  arrive  from  t ho 
Unituil  Statea.  Tlioy  have  a  Kcru'.iiii^  poat  at  '.Vcnii-Ir,  eiKhteini  ./lilea  alwve  Fort  8t. 
Mary,  wliere  they  have  eighty  fuo  i.  i.i.  ■jl.iirtly  ■•'pei't  tliree  li.e  (red  more  from  tha 
upper  jiart  of  Oeorifia.  Mujor  (tiKimt,  havin  >vit!li!l(i  liN  '.ipp-t  'ii.tiun  to  their  jiro- 
coedinu-H,  waa  apprehenaive  of  xiturj'..',  ti.r,J  began  to  tpak.;  .iJ<li'.iMiul  iii;f'jnvi'i,  --f»eo 
American  Htutu  Pupcra,  Bo-'U.n  fcii'ion,  'nl.  ii.,  p.  Oi 

A  diapatvh  from  Fort  ti-iiuK,  ui.t< -I  April  18t)i,  !*0l.  tiai.'.rt.-'  that  '  uiTcrr*  l/ivrj  l)een 
appointed,  and  are  now  aetii  i;  umlct  the  aiitl->;;cy  of  tiie  FrcMv!-.  U'  ;:u  lir,  !'ui-tic.'» 
of  rcoruita  have  alreody  reached  tlio  pen<ip:viu!j  epji/into'  iirt^iui,  ••..'v/.-t.'l  mm  of 
thia  corps  have  crosaed  the  Oconee,  and  j-.i  ciif  .np'j'l  -pp'.n'itC' )ir('Ci..iI)OVf.'uiu-  A 
small  party  was  for  some  doyn  oppoaito  (be  lu.n'U  Landiny^  r.^ey  Smvo  aim-n  runwiic*? 
to  Carr's  Bluff,  to  Join  those  asfii'iiibled  at  t'l.at  \'"ajc,  'i'hc  Kcnernl  nnitc/v:  ir  'n  „  i.,c« 
told,  is  on  the  St. Marj''a  lliver.  An  a.'ent  i«  rtopomtiirl  t »  fuinlii'v  tUc  i  upp''i«-8,  noc  In- 
haa, /or  that  purpose,  received  ton  I'lU-iHunit,  liul^ikri*.  A  (lersoii,  wl:'.)  whs  lir.ii -'ly  iho 
contractor's  clerk  at  this  post,  U  omph.y  .">i  by  'I'm  to  jiuri-lm'.e  ion.*  thousnt)''  rr.t'nhs  of 
provisions.  Ho  has  gone  down  tl)0  lonutry  to  '"noo'ito  l':is  bij^ines.s."  .\  t;  .loiieJ  Corr 
and  Major  Williamson  showed  l'a;.i>tii<  Idavtiu  "u  1,'tlor  os"  itnt.iiK  tioijs  v/hicii  choy 
had  received  from  General  Clark,  iirci  tiu!.'  tl  fuj  to  rrj'uir  to  Fort  I'tiilipB.  tli"  Rock 
Landing,  and  Carr's  Blaff,  for  the  purpose  of  pnyinp  tn  'i<j  V'lvvh  ""^'ic'D.  uu  allowance 
for  mileage  from  their  homes  to  thu  place  of  renderrvou^ .  i'h  ■  late  J.^.  it'jnant  Bird, 
who  is  now  a  captain  in  said  legion,  commands  tbe  mcu  «v>io  arn  encamped  on  thu 
Oconee,  opposite  to  Oi'eens'xirou;?!).  Mujur  'Wtlliomson  sn--;  '.'iiit  0'.>iieral  Clork 
would  cross  the  Oconee  in  ton  dr>..(!  from  tfuvi,  ijfi^  to  taV.i  t.io  command,  and  that 
Colonel  Corr  would  bo  our  of  thi:  udveuturers.  '  Wajor  Williau.sou  has  been  employed 
as  paymoster." — Idem,  p.  >'.' 

"  Colonel  Carr  stated  thtii,  tnvte  d»ffic'iMr.tjt»>  h  id  marched  from  the  back  settlements 
of  South  Carolina  and  from  the  StaCo  of  iConl'iijAy,  and  that  the  men  wcru  to  he  en- 
gaged for  three  montV  i  ajv.  v/ore  iv  ifceivo  bounties  of  land  in  the  provinces  of  East 
and  West  Florit  i,  ».ii'.  in  Lonijiiaaa,  which  they  were  to  conquer  from  the  Spaniards." 
— Idem,  p.  53 

On  t'  9  I'th  of  May,  1794,  General  Clark  was  on  the  Georgia  side  of  St.  Marj's  with 
two  huDMnid  men,  and  their  numbers  were  daily  increasing,  preparatory  to  crossing 
iv:.t"  J'  lorida,  and  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  on  Amelia  Island,  where  the  French 
had  landed  a  few  men,  and  were  making  preparations.  Colonel  Hammond,  from  Sa- 
vannah, formerly  of  the  Continental  army,  is  one  of  the  principal  officers.  The  people 
of  Savannah  are  strongly  opposed  to  the  enterprise.    Intercourse  with  Kentucky  and 


508 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[nOOK   IV. 


The  Spanish  government  was  no  less  fearful  of  the  invasion 
of  Louisiana  than  of  the  introduction  of  political  principles 
which  might  influence  the  western  provinces  of  Mexico;  but  the 
firm  and  decided  tone  now  assumed  by  the  executive  of  the 
Federal  government  was  such  that  Spain  perceived  plainly  the 
negotiation  must  be  brought  to  a  speedy  close,  or  war  would  he 
inevitable.  It  became  evident  that  any  policy  for  the  separa- 
tion of  the  western  country  from  the  Federal  Union  must  be 
put  into  speedy  operation,  or  it  must  inevitably  fail.  In  the 
mean  time,  Spanish  posts,  with  Spanish  garrisons,  occupied  the 
country  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi,  as  far  north  as  the 
present  site  of  Memphis.  The  western  and  southern  people, 
with  all  the  checks  of  the  Federal  authorities,  had  been  barely 
restrained  from  open  violence  against  Louisiana.  The  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  himself,  under  the  impression  that 
war  with  the  Spanish  provinces  would  he  forced  upon  him,  had 
begun  to  make  preparations  for  the  conflict,  and  had  required 
from  the  proper  departments  such  statistical  information  as 
would  enable  him  to  prepare  for  any  emergency.* 

The  excitement  among  the  western  people  was  extreme,  and 
large  military  forces  were  concentrated  upon  the  Ohio  River 
for  the  purpose  of  prosecuting  the  Indian  war  on  the  northwest- 
ern frontier.  This  had  greatly  increased  the  anxiety  of  the 
Governor  of  Louisiana,  who  now  feared  an  invasion  on  every 
spring  flood  which  descended  from  the  Ohio  River,  since  the 
Federal  troops  had  been  victorious  over  the  northwestern  sav- 
ages. 

The  views  and  political  feelings  of  the  people  of  Kentucky 
and  Tennessee,  relative  to  the  most  salutary  policy,  were  vari- 
ous and  discordant,  each  proposing  relief  to  their  embarrass- 
ments by  a  different  mode  of  action.  During  the  period  of  this 
excitement,  the  people  of  Kentucky,  and  the  West  generally, 
were  ranged  under  one  or  other  of  the  following  "  five  parties :" 

1st.  For  separation  from  the  Union  and  the  formation  of  an 
independent  Republic,  which  should  form  a  treaty  of  alliance 
and  commerce  with  Spain. 

Tenne88ee  by  way  of  tho  "  Wilderness  Boad"  to  Georgia  and  Carolina  was  exteu- 
live,  &;c. 

*  General  Waaliiiii,'ton,  believing  a  war  probable,  and  being  determined  not  to  be 
taken  unprepared,  had  provided  tho  necessary  information  relative  tu  the  military 
force,  and  means  of  defense  and  ott'ense,  possessed  by  tho  Spanish  provinces,  and  the 
preparation  necessary  on  the  part  of  the  United  States  fur  siilxiuing  Florida  and  Loui- 
siana.— See  Marshall's  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  v.,  p.  4G5;  also,  p.  475,  tirst  edition. 


A.D.  1794.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


500 


2d.  For  annexing  the  country  to  tlie  province  of  Louisiana, 
and  submitting  to  the  introduction  of  the  Spanisli  laws  and 
forms  of  civil  jurisprudence. 

3d.  For  actual  war  with  Spain,  the  capture  of  New  Orleans, 
and  the  whole  district  of  West  Florida. 

4th.  For  active  and  forcible  measures  by  Congress,  to  com- 
pel Spain,  by  force  of  arms  or  by  hostile  array,  to  yield  the 
privileges  and  rights  which  had  been  so  long  refused  by  nego- 
tiation. 

5th.  To  solicit  France  to  procure  a  retrocession  of  Louisi- 
ana, and  to  extend  her  protection  over  Kentucky  and  the  Cum- 
berland settlements.* 

Tiiis  unsettled  and  divided  state  of  public  feeling  among  the 
western  people  presented  to  the  mind  of  Governor  Carondelet 
a  favorable  opportunity  for  a  successful  mission  to  Kentucky, 
for  the  purpose  of  sounding  the  feelings  of  the  people  upon  the 
subject  of  an  alliance  with  Louisiana,  under  the  protection  of 
Spain.  Accordingly,  he  made  his  first  attempt  at  intrigue  with 
the  people  of  Kentucky  through  an  artful  emissary.  This  em- 
issary was  an  intelligent  and  intriguing  Englishman,  who  had 
become  a  Spanish  subject,  and  who  was  devoted  to  the  inter- 
ests of  Spain.  This  man,  under  the  authority  of  the  Governor 
of  Louisiana,  proceeded  on  the  doubtful  and  hazardous  enter- 
pris  e  of  sowing  the  seeds  of  sedition  among  the  western  peo- 
ple, at  a  time  when  Western  Pennsylvania  was  greatly  agi- 
tated by  the  "excise  on  distilled  spirits,"  commonly  known  as 
the  "  whisky  insurrection."!  The  spirit  of  resistance  to  the 
Federal  government,  in  the  enforcement  of  the  iniquitous  law, 
had  developed  itself  in  open  insurrection,  which  was  quelled 
only  by  the  px'esence  of  an  army  of  twelve  thousand  troops 
from  the  Eastern  States.  No  time  could  have  been  moi-e  pro- 
pitious for  the  enterprise  of  separating  Kentucky  and  the  west- 
ern country  generally.  Besides  the  insurrection  in  Western 
Pennsylvania,  and  the  divided  feelings  of  the  people  of  Ken- 
tucky and  Cumberland,  the  whole  northwestern  tribes  of  In- 
dians had  been  engaged  in  open  war,  instigated  and  aided  by 
British  agents  and  traders  from  Canada ;  the  Federal  govern- 
ment was  embarrassed  by  tedious  and  vexatious  negotiations 
with  oreat  Britain,  with  Spain,  and  even  with  France.     The 


*  Martin'i  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  101. 

t  See  book  v.,  chop,  v.,  "Political  Condition  of  Western  Pennsylvania." 


510 


lliaTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV 


stipulations  of  the  treaty  of  1783  were  violated  by  England  on 
the  northwestern  boundary,  and  by  Spain  on  the  southwestern 
limit ;  Great  Britain  still  held  the  northwestern  posts,  and  Spain 
the  southern  territory ;  both  powers  seemed  to  unite  in  the 
purpose  of  restricting  the  western  limits,  and  each  power  had 
her  emissary  in  the  West,  one  from  Baron  Carondelet  and  one 
from  Lord  Dorchester,  on  a  mission  of  )olitical  intrigue  with 
the  western  people.* 

Yet,  so  far  as  the  Federal  government  was  concerned,  Spain 
was  on  terms  of  peace  and  amity.  The  great  national  ques- 
tions of  boundary  and  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi 
were  still  unsettled,  and  afforded  subjects  of  protracted  nego- 
tiation. Spain,  having  an  eye  to  the  separation  of  the  western 
country,  and  desirous  of  waiting  the  result  of  the  prevailing 
difficulties  in  the  West,  had  deemed  it  most  politic  to  defer  any 
definite  negotiation  upon  the  subject,  which  might  ultimately 
endanger  the  peace  and  safety  of  Louisiana.  In  the  mean 
time,  the  restrictions  and  exactions  upon  the  commerce  and 
trade  of  the  river  had  been  again  enforced  with  rigor ;  and 
"Spain  had  persisted  in  withholding  all  the  rights  and  privi- 
leges of  that  navigation  from  the  citizens  of  the  United  States. 
There  were  various  grounds  of  policy  for  the  refusal ;  but 
probably  the  most  operative  was  a  secret  hope  that  the  west- 
ern people,  weary  of  these  obstacles  to  their  commerce,  and 
dissatisfied  with  the  national  government  for  not  removing 
them,  might  sooner  or  later  dissever  themselves  from  the 
Union,  and  form  a  separate  republic,  which  would  fall  under 
the  control  of  Spain."-j- 

[A.D.  1795.]  Under  these  influences,  it  is  not  strange  that 
the  court  of  Madrid  should  have  resorted  to  its  usual  policy  of 
procrastination  and  court  delays.  Another  consideration  bear- 
ing on  the  general  question  was  the  state  of  the  Indian  tribes 
in  the  West.  Those  on  the  northwest  had  been  for  several 
years  in  open  war  against  the  frontier  settlements,  and  those 
on  the  southwestern  frontier  were  far  from  friendly  to  the 
American  settlements.  The  hostilities  of  those  on  the  north- 
west, instigated  by  British  emissaries,  and  those  on  the  south- 
west, under  the  influence  of  Spanish  agents,  might  ultimately 
compel  a  separation. 


*  See  Marshall's  Life  of  WaRhington,  vol.  v.,  p.  46(M62,  first  edition. 
t  Sparka's  Writings  of  Washiugtun,  vol.  i.,  p.  467. 


A.o.  1795.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


511 


The  Federal  jrovernment  was  fully  apprised  of  the  conflict- 
ing interests  in  the  West,  upon  which  foreign  emissaries  might 
operate  to  accomplish  a  dismemberment  of  the  Union.  Al- 
though there  might  be  apparently  strong  reasons  for  complaint, 
and  for  a  partial  alienation  of  feeling  in  the  western  people  to- 
ward the  Federui  government,  still  the  President  confided  in 
the  virtue  and  patiiotism  of  the  people,  their  inveterate  repug- 
nance to  regal  authority,  and  their  attachment  to  their  friends 
east  of  the  mountains,  doubly  cemented  by  the  presence  iind 
influence  of  hundreds  of  revolutionary  ofBcers  and  soldiers, 
who  liad  taken  up  their  residence  in  the  West.  Determined  to 
maintain  the  rights  of  the  western  people  with  the  whole  pow- 
er of  the  Federal  government,  President  Washington  had  as- 
sumed a  firm  and  decided  tone,  and  persisted  in  urging  upon 
the  Spanish  crown  the  necessity  of  a  speedy  adjustment  of  all 
the  points  under  negotiation. 

Still  the  Baron  de  Carondelet  did  not  despair  of  final  success 
in  severing  the  Western  from  the  Eastern  States.  Early  in  the 
year  1795,  relieved  from  the  apprehension  of  danger  irom  a 
French  and  Kentucky  invasion  of  Louisiana,  he  determined, 
while  the  court  of  Madrid  was  procrastinating  the  negotiation 
with  the  Federal  government,  to  press  his  secret  negotiations 
with  the  disaflfected  of  Kentucky  and  the  West  generally.  Be- 
lieving the  Federal  authority  already  tottering  in  Western 
Pennsylvania,  and  almost  disregarded  in  Kentucky,  he  deemed 
the  present  juncture  highly  auspicious  to  his  designs. 

Accordingly,  having  been  apprised  by  Powers  of  the  state  of 
popular  feeling  in  Kentucky,  he  despatched  Don  Manuel  Ga- 
yoso,  a  brigadier-general  in  the  armies  of  Spain,  and  Lieuten- 
ant-governor of  Natchez  and  its  dependences,  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Ohio  as  a  special  agent,  authorized  to  negotiate  with  the 
leading  conspirators  of  Kentucky  relative  to  the  weighty  mat- 
ters in  contemplation. 

In  this  mission  was  associated  Thomas  Powers,  the  former 
emissary  to  Kentucky,  who  had  been  successful  in  his  i'ormer 
mission,  and  had  made  arrangements  with  the  four  most  prom- 
inent conspirators,  Sebastian,  Innis,  Murray,  and  Nicholas,  to 
meet  the  Baron's  commissioner  at  some  point  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Ohio.  By  appointment,  they  were  to  meet  Powers  at 
the  Red  Banks  on  the  Ohio,  the  site  of  the  present  town  of 
Hendersonville  in  Kentucky. 


512 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


To  conceal  the  real  object  of  the  lieutenant-governor's  vis- 
it to  Upper  Louisiana,  he  conducted  a  detachment  of  troops 
for  re-enforcing  the  different  posts,  for  completing  the  stockade 
fort  at  the  fourth  Chickasa  Bluff,  and  commencing  one  just  be- 
low the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  While  engaged  in  these  duties. 
Powers  was  dispatched  in  a  fine  Spanish  row-barge  to  meet 
his  engagement  at  the  Red  Banks.  But  the  mission  failed  in 
its  object.  The  increasing  danger,  from  public  indignation 
against  those  who  had  been  suspected  of  conspiring  for  an  al- 
liance with  Spain,  consequent  upon  a  separation  from  the  Fed- 
eral Union,  had  now  become  imminent  and  alarming ;  the  Fed- 
eral army  under  General  Wayne  was  now  victorious  over 
the  savages ;  the  people  were  relieved  from  Indian  hostilities 
on  every  frontier ;  the  authority  of  the  Federal  government  in 
Western  Pennsylvania  had  been  restored,  and  the  people  of 
Kentucliy  relied  upon  their  victorious  troops  to  vindicate  their 
rights  on  the  Mississippi,  under  the  authority  of  the  United 
States ;  and  Kentucky  had  now  been  an  independent  state  for 
nearly  two  years.  An  alliance  with  Louisiana  under  the  Span- 
ish crown  had  now  become  preposterous  in  the  extreme,  and 
the  conspirators  of  Kentucky  prudently  declined  appearing  at 
the  Red  Banks. 

Judge  Sebastian  was  the  only  Kentuckian  who  attended  on 
the  part  of  the  conspirators  to  meet  the  Spanish  emissary  ;  but 
he,  as  if  deluded  to  his  own  ruin,  consented  to  descend  the  riv- 
er to  hold  an  interview  with  the  Spanish  commissioner,  Ga- 
yoso,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  But  as  an  unexpected  change 
in  the  face  of  affairs  had  taken  place,  Gayoso  declined  to  ne- 
gotiate definitely  with  Sebastian,  and  induced  him  to  continue 
his  voyage  to  New  Orleans,  and  there  confer  with  the  baron 
in  person.  After  a  sojourn  of  several  weeks  at  Natchez,  and 
some  time  in  New  Orleans,  Sebastian  took  passage  by  sea  for 
Philadelphia,  on  his  return  to  Kentucky.* 

In  the  mean  time,  Spain  had  become  embarrassed  in  the  Eu- 
ropean wars,  and,  fearing  hostilities  on  the  part  of  the  United 
States  against  Louisiana,  had  intimated,  through  the  Spanish 
minister  at  Philadelphia,  that  negotiations  might  now  be  expedi- 
ted on  the  great  points  in  controversy,  provided  a  regular  en- 
voy of  high  grade  were  sent  to  the  court  of  Madrid.  Presi- 
dent Washington  lost  no  time  in  delay ;  in  November,  1794,  he 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  ISC. 


A.D.  1795.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


513 


had  nominated  Mr.  Thomas  Pinckney  as  minister  plenipoten- 
tiary and  envoy  extraordinary  to  the  court  of  Madrid.  His 
nomination  had  been  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  and  the  follow- 
ing summer  he  repaired  to  Spain.  Negotiations  were  soon 
opened  with  the  Spanish  court,  and  in  due  time  a  treaty  was 
prepared,  which  was  signed  on  the  20th  day  of  October,  1796, 
covering  the  whole  ground  of  controversy  which  had  engaged 
the  attention  of  both  countries  for  nearly  ten  years.f 

The  principal  stipulations  of  the  treaty  on  this  subject  were 
as  follows,  viz. : 

1.  The  second  article  stipulates  that  the  future  boundary  be- 
tween the  United  States  and  the  Floridas  shall  be  the  thirty-first 
parallel  of  north  latitude,  from  the  Mississippi  eastward  to  the 
Chattahoochy  River ;  thence  along  a  line  running  due  east,  from 
the  mouth  of  Flint  River  to  the  head  of  the  St.  Mary's  River, 
and  thence  down  the  middle  of  that  river  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean  ; 
and  that,  within  six  months  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty, 
the  troops  and  garrisons  of  each  power  shall  be  withdrawn  to 
its  own  side  of  this  boundary,  and  the  people  shall  be  at  liber- 
ty to  retire  with  all  their  eflects,  if  they  desire  so  to  do. 

2.  The  third  article  stipulates  that  each  party,  respectively, 
shall  appoint  one  commissioner  and  one  surveyor,  with  a  suit- 
able military  guard  of  equal  numbers,  well  provided  with  in- 
struments and  assistants,  who  shall  meet  at  Natchez  within  six 
months  after  the  mutual  ratification  of  the  treaty,  and  proceed 
thence  to  run  and  mark  the  said  southern  boundary  of  the  Uni- 
ted States. 

3.  The  fourth  article  stipulates  that  the  middle  of  the  Missis- 
sippi River  shall  be  the  western  boundary  of  the  United  Stales, 
from  its  source  to  the  intersection  of  the  said  "  line  of  demarka- 
tion."  The  King  of  Spain  also  stipulates  that  the  whole  width 
of  said  river,  from  its  source  to  the  sea,  shall  be  free  to  the 
people  of  the  United  States. 

4.  The  fifth  article  stipulates  that  each  party  shall  require 
and  enforce  peace  and  neutrality  among  the  Indian  tribes  in- 
habiting their  territories  respectively. 

5.  The  King  of  Spain  stipulates  and  agrees  to  permit  the 
people  of  the  United  States,/or  the  term  of  three  years,  to  use 
the  port  of  New  Orleans  as  a  place  of  deposit  for  their  produce 
and  merchandise,  and  to  export  the  same  free  from  all  duty  or 

*  Manhall's  Life  of  Washington,  vol.  v.,  p.  641,  first  edition. 

Vol.  I.— K  K 


514 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


charge,  except  a  reasonable  consideration  to  be  paid  for  stor- 
age and  other  incidental  expenses  ;  that  the  term  of  three  years 
may,  by  subsequent  negotiation,  be  extended ;  or,  instead,  some 
other  point  in  the  island  of  New  Orleans  shall  be  designated  as 
a  place  of  deposit  for  the  American  trade.  Other  commer- 
cial advantages  were  likewise  held  out  as  within  the  reach  of 
negotiation.* 

This  treaty  was  duly  ratified  by  the  Senate  in  March  fol- 
lowing, and  the  Federal  executive  proceeded  to  make  the  ne- 
cessary arrangements  for  the  fulfillment  of  all  the  stipulations 
on  the  part  of  the  United  States. 

In  the  meaii  time,  the  whole  state  of  Georgia  had  been  in  a 
state  of  excitement  to  expel  the  Spaniards  from  the  western 
and  southern  limits  of  that  state,  as  defined  by  the  treaty  of 
1783.  According  to  the  royal  charter  and  the  treaty  of  1783, 
Georgia  laid  claim  to  all  the  territory  on  her  western  frontier, 
extending  to  the  Mississippi  River  on  the  west,  and  southward 
to  the  thirty-first  degree  of  north  latitude.  This  claim  em- 
braced all  the  Natchez  District  upon  the  Mississippi,  from  the 
sources  of  the  Yazoo  and  Tombigby  Rivers  to  their  mouths. 
This  whole  region,  however,  was  held  and  claimed  by  Spain 
as  a  part  of  West  Florida.  The  fine  lands,  watered  by  these 
large  rivers  and  their  tributaries,  had  been  represented  as  the 
paradise  of  the  South.  Popular  excitement  to  enjoy  and  pos- 
sess the  delightful  regions  which  properly  belonged  to  the  State 
of  Georgia  had  been  fanned  into  a  flame  of  enthusiasm,  which 
resulted  in  the  wildest  schemes  of  avarice  and  speculation. 
The  contagion  spread  through  the  whole  state,  and  even  to 
North  Carolina  and  Virginia ;  it  pervaded  the  halls  of  legisla- 
tion, and  polluted  the  integrity  of  the  legislative  body.  Au- 
thority by  the  Georgia  Legislature  was  given  to  visionary 
men,  to  enthusiasts,  and  to  speculators,  to  inundate  the  country 
with  scores  of  adventurers  and  emigrants.  The  state  had  sent 
commissioners  to  the  Spanish  governor  with  a  formal  demand 
for  the  surrender  and  evacuation  of  the  territory  east  of  the 
Mississippi  and  north  of  the  proper  limit  of  Florida.     The  de- 

*  See  American  State  Paperg,  folio  ed.,  Foreign  AfTairs,  vol.  i.,  p.  547-549.  See, 
also,  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  129,  130.  Martin,  however,  errs  in  his  tumi  for 
which  Spain  stipulated  the  use  of  the  port  of  New  Orleans  as  a  place  of  deposit.  The 
treaty  itself,  in  the  American  State  Papers,  specifies  "  tkree  ycart"  as  the  term  of  de- 
posit, which  may  bo  extended.  Martin  gives  the  term  stipulated  erroneously  at  "  ten 
years." 


A.D.  1795.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPri. 


515 


mand  had  been  disregarded  by  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  the 
Legislature  had  proceeded  to  provide  for  its  occupation,  by  or- 
ganizing that  portion  near  the  Mississippi  into  the  "  county  of 
Bourbon,"  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  State  of  Georgia.  "  The 
Yazoo  speculation"  was  set  on  foot,  in  which  more  than  seven 
millions  of  acres  of  the  finest  lands  in  the  world  were  thrown 
into  a  second  "  Mississippi  scheme,"  to  be  obtained  for  a  mere 
trifle,  and  to  servo  as  fountains  of  future  riches.  The  *'  Mis- 
sissippi Company"  was  chartered  with  the  control  of  more  than 
three  millions  of  acres,  at  the  rate  of  two  and  a  half  cents  per 
acre,  to  be  paid  into  the  state  treasury.  The  stock  comprised 
forty  shares  of  seventy-five  thousand  acres  each,  controlled  by 
a  company  of  seven  men  as  stockholders.*  Besides  this  com- 
pany under  the  authority  of  the  state,  seventy-five  sub-shares, 
in  the  shape  of  land-script,  were  issued  to  about  seventy  other 
individuals;  each  sub-share  called  for  twenty-eight  thousand 
acres,  giving  an  aggregate  of  more  than  three  millions  of  acres. 

The  act  of  the  Georgia  Legislature  establishing  this  great 
scheme  of  speculation  was  passed  on  the  7th  day  of  January, 
1795.  The  next  session  of  the  Legislature  not  only  repealed 
the  act,  but  declared  the  whole  null  and  void,  as  having  been 
obtained  by  fraud  and  corruption.  The  act  repealing  and  re- 
scinding all  parts  of  the  charter  passed  on  the  13th  day  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1796,  and  directed  all  grants  made  by  the  Mississippi 
Company,  all  certificates  of  stock  issued  by  the  authority  of  said 
act,  and  all  records  of  the  same,  to  be  cancelled  and  destroyed, 
and  all  moneys  paid  into  the  state  treasury  to  be  refunded.f 

The  former  act  of  the  Georgia  Legislature  infringed  upon 
the  prerogatives  of  the  Federal  government  in  assuming  the 
power  to  settle  a  question  of  national  boundary,  and  to  involve 
the  Union  in  war  with  a  friendly  power.  Now  the  treaty  of 
Madrid,  on  the  part  of  the  Federal  executive,  had  amicably  ar- 

*  As  it  may  be  interesting  to  some  readers  to  become  more  fully  acquainted  with 
the  whole  history  of  the  "  Yazoo  speculation,"  as  it  is  called,  wo  refer  them  to  a  full 
occoimt  of  all  the  documentary  evidence  furnished  to  the  Federal  government  on  the 
subject,  and  published  by  order  of  Congn*ess,  among  the  "  American  State  Papers," 
folio  edition,  vol.  i.,  "Public  Lands,"  p.  129-146. 

The  Mississippi  Company,  chartered  January  7th,  1795,  was  composed  of  Jamps  Qunn, 
Matthew  M'AUistcr,  George  Walker,  Zachariah  Coxe,  Jacob  Waldburger,  William 
Longstreet,  and  Wade  Hampton. 

Among  the  sub-shareholders  were  nineteen  prominent  members  of  the  Legislature, 
who  had  voted  for  the  scheme,  or,  as  it  has  byen  sometimes  called,  the  "  Yazoo  Bubble." 
— See  American  State  Papers,  vol.  i.,  Public  Lands,  p.  128, 129. 

t  See  American  State  Pap^^^-  '^ol.  i..  Public  Lands,  p.  123. 


510 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV 


ranged  the  question  of  boundary,  by  which  a  peaceable  sur- 
render had  been  secured. 

Yet  this  procedure  on  the  part  of  the  Georgia  Legislature 
had  greatly  tended  to  embarrass  the  prospects  of  the  Spanish 
authorities  in  their  contemplated  retention  of  the  country. 
Hundreds  of  fiery  spirits  and  enterprising  men  had  sought  the 
Mississippi  by  way  of  the  Yazoo  and  Tombigby,  and,  under 
the  influence  of  the  Yazoo  speculation,  had  reached  the  settle- 
ments known  as  the  Natchez  District. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

POLITICAL  RELATIONS  BETWEEN  THE  UNITED  STATES  AND  LOUISI- 
ANA, FROM  THE  TREATY  OF  MADRID  TO  THE  SURRENDER  OF  THE 
NATCHEZ  DISTRICT. A.D.   1796  TO  1798. 

Argument. — Treaty  of  Madrid  merely  a  Measure  of  State  Policy  with  Spain. — Her  In- 
tention to  evade  its  Stipulations,  if  possible. — Intrigue  with  the  western  People. — 
The  Unite<l  States  prepare  in  good  Faith  to  carry  oat  the  Stipulations.— Colonel  Elli- 
cott,  as  Conunissiouer  of  the  United  States,  arrives  at  Natchez. — His  Military  Escort 
left  at  Bayou  Pierre. — Gayoso  designates  the  19th  of  March  to  begin  the  Line  of 
Demarkation. — Ellicott  encamps  in  Natchez.— Proceedings  delayed  by  Baron  Caron- 
delet. — Ellicott  orders  down  his  Military  Escort. — Gayoso  suddenly  ceases  Prepara- 
tions to  evacuate  the  Fort  Panmurc. — Fortifies  this  Post. — Pretext  for  Change  of 
Conduct. — Lieutenant  M'Leary,  with  his  Escort,  orrives  from  Bayou  Pierre. — Gay- 
oso continues  to  strengthen  his  Defenses. — Indian  Hostilities  alleged  as  the  Cause. 
— Next,  a  British  Invasion  from  Canada  apprehended. — Blount's  Conspiracy,  and  its 
Explosion. — The  People  become  excited. — Correspondence  between  the  American 
Commissioner  and  Gayoso. — Advanced  Guard  under  Lieutenant  Pope  arrives  at 
Natchez. — Gayoso  objects  to  the  Presonce  of  United  States  Troops  at  Natchez. — 
Other  Reasons  for  Delay  urged  by  Gayoso. — His  Agents  tamper  with  the  Indians. 
— Popular  Excitement  increases. — The  Governor-general  issiics  his  Proclamation, 
24th  of  May. — Effects  of  this  Proclamation. — Efibrts  of  Gayoso  to  calm  the  popu- 
lar Excitement. — Arrest  and  Imprisonment  of  Hannah. — This  excites  the  People  to 
Resistance. — Colonel  Ellicott  and  Lieutenant  Pope  sustain  the  popular  Commotion. 
— Gayoso's  Proclamation  of  June  14th. — A  public  Meeting  called. — Gayoso  and  his 
Family  retire  to  the  Fort. — Seeks  an  Interview  with  the  American  Commissioner. 
— "  Committee  of  Public  Safety"  apfointed. — This  Committee  recognized  by  Gayoso. 
— A  "  Permanent  Committee"  elected. — Opposition  of  Colonel  Hutchens  and  others, 
who  sustain  Gayoso. — Ellicott  retires  to  Washington. — Gayoso  appointed  Governor- 
general. — Iletires  to  New  Orleans. — Captain  Guion  arrives  with  United  States 
Troops. — His  Attempt  to  restore  Harmony  and  Tranquillity. — The  Policy  of  his  Course. 
— The  Posts  of  Nogales  and  Panmuro  evacuated  in  March,  1798.— The  Line  of  De- 
markation conomenced  in  May,  1798,  and  completed  next  Year. — First  organization 
of  the  Mississippi  Territory. — Arrival  of  the  Territorial  Governor  and  Judges. — Gen- 
eral Wilkinson  arrives  with  United  States  Troops. — Retrospect  of  tlie  Spanish  Poli- 
cy.— Pretexts  for  Delay,  and  the  Intrigue  with  General  Wilkinson  again  unsuccess- 
ful.— Return  of  Emissary  Powers. 

[A.D.  1796.]     As  has  been  already  observed,  the  difficulties 
which  had  sprung  up  between  the  United  States  and  Spain, 


A.D.   1700.] 


VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPIM. 


517 


relative  to  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  southern 
boundary  of  Georgia,  appeared  to  have  been  settled  by  the 
treaty  of  Madrid.  But,  although  Spain  suspended  her  restric- 
tions upon  the  river  trade  after  this  treaty  had  been  duly  rati- 
fied, it  was  quite  apparent  that  the  king  never  intended  to  sur- 
render the  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi  and  north  of  latitude 
31°,  provided  any  contingency  would  enable  him  to  hold  pos- 
session.* The  King  of  Spain  had  been  compelled,  by  the 
pressure  of  political  embarrassments,  both  in  Europe  and  in  the 
United  States,  to  yield  a  reluctant  assent  to  the  treaty,  as  the 
only  means  by  which  he  could  preserve  the  province  of  Louisi- 
ana from  invasion,  and  conciliate  the  hostile  feelings  of  the 
western  people  of  the  United  States.  The  provincial  authori- 
ties in  Louisiana  seemed  to  view  the  late  treaty  on  the  part 
of  Spain  as  a  mere  measure  of  policy  and  court  finesse,  to 
propitiate  the  neutrality  of  the  Federal  government  and  satisfy 
the  American  people  until  her  European  embarrassments  should 
have  been  surmounted. 

Spain,  incited  by  France,  had  been  upon  the  verge  of  a  war 
with  Great  Britain ;  and  already  the  British  authorities  in  Can- 
ada had  planned  an  invasion  of  Upper  Louisiana,  by  way  of 
the  lakes  and  the  Illinois  River,  whenever  hostilities  should  be 
formally  proclaimed.  To  prevent  this  invasion  was  one  object 
to  be  gained  by  acceding  to  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  which  would 
place  the  neutral  territory  of  a  friendly  power  in  the  way  of 
military  invasion.  In  the  mean  time,  the  Baron  de  Carondelet, 
regardless  of  the  treaty  stipulations  which  had  been  made  on 
the  part  of  his  government,  again  dispatched  his  emissary, 
Powers,  to  Kentucky  and  the  Northwestern  Territory,  with  a 
large  amount  of  money,  to  foment  disaffection  in  the  West,  and 
to  encourage  those  who  still  desired  a  separation  from  the 
Union. 

As  has  been  observed  in  the  preceding  chapter,  the  treaty 
stipulated  that  each  government  should  appoint  one  commis- 
sioner and  one  principal  surveyor,  who  should  meet  at  Natchez 
within  six  months  after  the  ratification  of  the  treaty,  or  about 
the  first  of  October,  1796.t 

The  commissioners  and  surveyors,  duly  appointed,  were  to 


*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  138, 139. 

t  For  a  full  account  of  tliii  treaty  and  the  accompanying  docomonts,  ace  "  The  Amer- 
ican State  Papers,"  "  Foreign  Relations,"  folio  edition,  vol.  i.,  p.  533-551. 


51S 


IIiaTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV 


proceed  from  Natchez  to  ascertain  the  point  on  the  east  bank 
of  the  Mississippi  which  is  intersected  by  the  thirty-first  paral- 
lel of  north  latitude.  From  that  point  on  the  said  parallel  they 
should  cause  to  be  run,  opened,  and  marked  "  a  proper  line  of 
demarkation,"  eastward  to  the  Chattahoochy  River.  After  this 
line  should  have  been  thus  established,  the  troops  of  Spain 
were  to  be  withdrawn  from  the  forts  and  territory  north  of  this 
line,  and  the  country  formally  surrendered  to  the  commissioner 
of  the  United  States. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  President  of  the  United  States  had  ap- 
pointed  Colonel  Andrew  EUicott,  as  commissioner  on  the  part 
of  the  Federal  government,  to  meet  the  Spanish  commissioner 
at  the  place  and  time  designated  in  the  treaty,  to  be  accom- 
panied by  a  small  detachment  of  troops  from  the  western 
army.  Don  Manuel  Gayoso  de  Lemos,  commandant  of  Fort 
Panmure,  and  govc  rnor  of  the  Natchez  dependences,  was  ap- 
pointed commissioner  on  the  part  of  Spain,  under  the  orders 
of  the  Baron  de  Carondelet,  governor-general  of  Louisiana  and 
the  Floridas.* 

About  the  middle  of  September,  Colonel  Ellicott  departed 
from  Philadelphia  for  the  West,  on  his  way  to  meet  the  Span- 
ish commissioner  at  Natchez.  At  Pittsburgh  he  obtained  his 
corps  of  thirty  woodsmen,  armed  with  rifles,  and  descended 
the  Ohio  in  a  barge  conveying  his  instruments,  baggage,  and 
stores,  to  be  followed  soon  afterward  by  a  military  escort  of 
thirty  men,  to  be  furnished  by  Colonel  Butler,  commanding  at 
Pittsburgh.  Delayed  on  the  Ohio  by  extreme  low  water,  and 
other  unavoidable  circumstances,  he  did  not  reach  the  Missis- 
sippi until  the  22d  of  December,  where  he  was  again  detained 
by  ice,  which  had  now  closed  both  rivers.  On  the  31st  of 
January,  1797,  having  received  his  military  escort  and  supplies, 
he  descended  the  Mississippi,  and  on  the  24th  of  February  ar- 
rived at  Natchez,  having  touched  at  each  of  the  Spanish  posts 
on  the  way,  and  having  left  his  military  escort  at  the  Bayou 
Pierre,  at  the  special  request  of  Governor  Gayoso.  ». 

[A.D.  1797.]  In  the  mean  time,  the  governor-general,  as 
well  as  Lieutenant-governor  Gayoso,  had  been  duly  notified 
of  the  approach  of  the  American  commissioner.  The  several 
commandants  on  the  river  had  been  instructed  to  use  every 
effort  short  of  compulsion,  under  one  pretext  or  another,  to  re- 
tard his  advance. 

*  Stoddart'a  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  89.    Ellicott's  Journal,  p.  26-38. 


A.D.  1797.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MIS9I9Sirr[. 


510 


After  a  polite  and  formal  recei)tion  from  Governor  Gayoso, 
Colonel  Ellicolt  announced  the  object  of  his  mission,  and  desir- 
ed the  co-operation  of  the  Spanish  commissioner  in  ascertain- 
ing the  point  on  the  Mississi|)pi  at  which  the  line  of  demarkatiun 
should  commence.  At  an  interview  next  day,  upon  the  ur^'ent 
solicitation  of  Colonel  Ellicott,  Gayoso  reluctantly  appointed 
the  19th  day  of  March  as  the  time  for  commencing  tlio  line  of 
demarkation,  at  which  time  both  commissioners  should  repair 
to  Clarksville,  on  the  Mississippi,  near  Bayou  Tunica.  This 
point  had  been  ascertained,  by  astronomical  observation,  to  be 
near  the  intersection  of  the  thirty-fust  parallel  of  north  latitude. 

Three  days  after  Colonel  Ellicott's  arrival  he  had  pitched 
his  tent,  and  located  his  camp  upon  an  eminence  within  the 
limits  of  the  present  city  of  Natchez,  and  about  five  hundred 
yards  north  of  Fort  Panmure,  which  was  strongly  fortified,  and 
occupied  by  a  garrison  of  Spanish  troops.  At  this  point,  not 
far  from  the  present  intersection  of  Wall  and  Jefferson  streets, 
he  hoisted  the  flag  of  the  United  States,  and  having  commen- 
ced his  astronomical  observations,  he  found  the  Intitude  of  his 
markee  to  be  31°  33'  40"  north,  or  about  thirty-nine  miles  north 
of  the  intersection  of  the  thirty-first  parallel  of  latitude,  and  the 
proper  point  for  commencing  the  line  of  demarkation.* 

In  the  mean  time,  the  governor-general  had  been  apprised 
of  the  arrival  of  the  commissioner  of  the  United  States,  duly 
authorized  to  co-operate  in  establishing  the  line  of  demarka- 
tion. But  it  was  soon  apparent  that  he  declined  any  immediate 
action  in  the  mutter,  alleging  important  business  in  New  Or- 
leans, which  would  prevent  his  presence  at  the  time  designa- 
ted by  Gayoso.  At  the  same  time,  he  held  out  various  induce- 
ments to  draw  the  American  commissioner  to  New  Orleans. 
Colonel  Ellicott,  however,  declined  to  leave  the  point  designa- 
ted in  the  treaty,  and  remained  at  Natchez.  The  military  es- 
cort under  Lieutenant  M'Leary  was  ordered  from  the  Bayou 
Pierre,  and  reached  Natchez  on  the  15th  of  March.  The  com- 
mandant encamped  upon  the  eminence  contiguous  to  Colonel 
Ellicott'i  flag,  and  soon  afterward  he  appeared  at  the  head  of 
his  men  before  Panmure,  and  formally  demanded  the  surren- 
der of  the  post  to  the  troops  of  the  United  States. 

Gayoso,  until  this  time,  had  been  apparently  making  prepa- 
rations for  evacuating  the  post ;  the  artillery  and  stores  were 

*  See  EUicott'a  Journal,  p.  41-50. 


IIIHTORY   OP   TUB 


[book  IV. 


■  I 


removed  from  the  fort,  niui  other  preparations  indicated  the 
speedy  withdrawal  of  the  troops.  Hut  suddenly  the  artillery 
and  stores  were  returned  to  the  fort  by  ni^ht,  the  cannon  were 
remounted,  and  the  fort  was  again  placed  in  a  stato  of  defense.  * 
This  movement,  and  others  subseciuently  made,  were  doubtless 
the  result  of  secret  orders  from  Governor  Curondelet  at  New 
Orleans. 

Gayoso  soon  afterward  proceeded  to  strengthen  the  defens- 
es at  Natchez  and  Walnut  Hills,  and  to  re-enforce  the  garri- 
sons from  New  Orleans  ;  but  Colonel  Ellicott  formally  protest- 
ed against  his  proceedings,  as  a  violation  of  good  faith  toward 
the  United  States,  and  calculated  to  embarrass  and  procrasti- 
nate the  object  of  his  mission.  In  reply,  Gayoso  alleged  that 
his  defensive  measures  were  prompted  by  apprehensions  of 
Indian  hostilities.  At  a  subsequent  period,  he  alleged  a  threat- 
ened invasion  of  Louisiana  from  Canada  as  the  cause  of  his  de- 
fensive preparations.  Under  the  latter  pretext,  for  several 
months  Gayoso  continued  to  fortify  the  diflerent  posts  on  the 
Mississippi  above  Natchez,  and  to  re-enforce  their  garrisons. 
Thus  the  meeting  of  the  commissioners  for  establishing  the  line 
of  demarkation  was  indefinitely  postponed. 

The  American  commissioner  became  highly  exasperated  at 
the  various  pretexts  for  procrastination  advanced  by  the  Span- 
ish governor,  and  the  artifices  employed  to  induce  him  to  retire 
from  the  point  designated  in  the  treaty.f  An  angry  corre- 
spondence had  already  commenced  between  the  commissioners, 
and  Lieutenant  M'Leary  had  begun  to  fortify  his  camp.  Great 
excitement  began  to  prevail  among  the  people  of  the  district, 
under  the  apprehension  that  the  Spaniards  did  not  intend  to 
surrender  the  country  to  the  United  States.  Colonel  Ellicott 
and  Lieutenant  M'Leary  maintained  their  position,  anxiously 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  an  advanced  guard  of  United  States 
troops,  which  were  known  to  be  on  their  way  from  Fort  Massac. 

In  the  mean  time,  General  Wayne  had  advanced  the  army 
of  occupation  to  Fort  Massac,  there  to  await  further  orders. 
From  this  point,  near  the  last  of  March,  Lieutenant  Piercy 
Smith  Pope,  with  a  detachment  of  forty  men,  was  ordered  to 
descend  the  Mississippi  and  to  keep  within  supporting  distance 
of  Colonel  Ellicott.  This  detachment  arrived  at  the  Walnut 
Hills  early  in  April,  when  Lieutenant  Pope  reported  himself  to 

*  Ellicott'!  Journal,  p.  54-58.  t  Idem,  50-58. 


A.D.  1707.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MlrtSliSSlPPI. 


521 


Colonel  Kllicott,  and  eiKrainped  ii<  the  Spanish  fori,  in  corn- 
pliance  with  a  rc(iiicst  tVoni  Ciayoso,  tlirough  the  connnatuliint 
of  that  post. 

On  the  17th  of  Ajuil  ('ol"«el  KlUcott  was  first  apprised  of 
the  arrival  of  Lieutenant  P*  pe  at  the  Walnut  Hills,  and  he  im- 
mediately dispatched  a  mesNcni^er  re(piesting  him  to  advance 
to  his  relief  without  dela  On  the  :21th  of  April  Lieutenant 
Pope,  with  his  detachment,  arrived  at  Natchez,  and  was  escort- 
ed from  the  upper  landing  to  the  camp  of  the  American  com- 
missioner by  Lieutenant  M'Leary's  company.* 

But  the  Spanisii  governor  strongly  remonstrated  against  the 
presence  of  tl  ♦•  Tnited  States  troops,  intrenched  within  sigiit 
of  the  Spanish  lart,  and  immediately  under  the  eye  of  tli(>  Span- 
ish authorities,  lie  therefore  desired  that  Colonel  Ellicott, 
with  the  detachments  of  troops  and  his  woodsmen,  would  re- 
move to  Clarksville,  near  the  point  for  their  future  operations; 
but  the  American  commissioner  declined  leaving  the  point  des- 
ignated in  the  treaty.  Gayoso  at  length  desired  him  to  accept 
comfortable  buildings  for  himself  and  the  troops  at  "Villa  Ga- 
yoso," a  Spanish  church  and  village  near  the  bluff,  about  fifteen 
miles  above  Natchez ;  but  the  American  commissioner  pre- 
ferred the  more  appropriate  shelter  of  the  tent,  in  the  open  air; 
and  Lieutenant  Pope  proceeded  to  complete  the  intrenchments 
of  their  camp.  Soon  afterward,  he  deemed  it  expedient  to  oug- 
ment  his  force  by  voluntary  enlistment,  and  by  the  apprehen- 
sion of  some  deserters  from  the  northern  army,  who  had  found 
an  asylum  among  the  Spaniards.  This,  again,  was  a  new 
cause  of  remonstrance  from  the  Spanish  governor. 

But  the  American  commissioner,  from  various  sources  of  in- 
formation, and  from  the  general  tenor  of  the  lieutenant-govern- 
or's correspondence,  believed  that  the  governor-general  did 
not  intend  to  evacuate  the  posts  and  surrender  the  country,  in 
compliance  with  the  terms  of  the  treaty.  The  correspondence 
between  the  commissioners  continued,  and  while  the  Spaniard 
was  fruitful  in  pretexts  and  expedients  for  delay  and  equivoca- 
tion, the  American  was  no  less  ready  to  expose  the  fallacy  of 
every  pretext,  and  to  urge  the  futility  of  his  reasons  for  further 
delays. 

It  was  the  last  of  May  when  the  proclamation  of  the  Baron 
Carondelet  announced  that  the  delivery  of  the  country,  and  the 

«  Sec  Ellicott's  Joamol,  p.  79,  80. 


522 


Hiarnnv  of  the 


[book  IV, 


evacuation  of  the  posts  on  the  Mississippi,  were  delayed  on  ac- 
count of  a  threatened  invasion  by  British  troops  from  Canada 
by  way  of  the  Illinois  River.  This  a|)prehension  on  the  part 
of  the  Spanish  governor  was  not  without  foundation.  Al- 
though Colonel  Ellicolt  was  inclined  to  disbelieve  the  rumor, 
and  ascribe  it  to  the  fears  and  credulity  of  the  Spaniards,  yet 
the  actual  state  of  facts,  unknown  to  the  American  commission- 
er, were  sufficient  to  excite  apprehension  in  the  mind  of  the 
governor. 

On  the  Gth  of  October  preceding,  Spain,  having  entered  into 
an  alliance  with  the  French  Republic,  had  declared  war  against 
Great  Britain,  and  that  power  had  entered  into  treaty  with  the 
United  States  the  preceding  year,  by  which  the  latter  conceded 
the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi.  Might  not  the  United 
States  make  common  cause  with  the  English  of  Canada  to  ex- 
pel the  Spaniards  from  the  Mississippi  ?  To  the  Spanish  gov- 
ernor the  enterprise  did  not  appear  impossible.* 

•  At  this  time  there  waa  a  strong  military  force  in  Canada,  and  there  were  persons 
in  the  United  Btatoa  who  would  gladly  have  juinud  even  a  British  invasion  of  Louisi- 
ana; and  altliough  the  British  cabinet  disavowed  any  such  intentions,  the  ])rovincial 
authorities  of  Canada  no  doubt  seriously  contemplated  such  on  event,  ns  did  men  of 
influence  in  the  United  States.  At  the  very  time  that  Gayoso  was  deferring  the  ful- 
fillment of  tlie  treaty,  his  allusion  t«)  a  British  invasion  was  not  without  foundation.  As 
was  subsequently  ascertained.  Senator  William  Blount,  from  Tennessee,  who  had  en- 
joyed the  confidence  of  the  Federal  government  as  "  Governor  of  the  Southwestern  Ter- 
ritory and  In<lian  agent,"  and  was  intimately  acquainted  with  tlie  southern  country, 
people,  and  Indian  tribes,  where  he  had  great  influence,  conceived  the  design  of  a  con- 
spiracy to  aid  tlie  British  forces  of  Canada  by  way  of  Lake  Michigan,  Chicago,  and  the 
niinois  River,  to  invade  Louisiana  and  capture  New  Orleans.  The  troops  of  Great 
Britain  in  Canada  had  actually  embe 'ked  from  Cluebcc  for  the  lakes.  Blount's  plan  of 
operations  contemplated  a  strong  rc-euforcement  from  the  Ohio,  the  Tennessee,  and 
Cumberland  Rivers,  with  supplies  of  military  stores  and  provisions,  to  meet  the  invad- 
ing forces  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  Blount,  having  disclosed  his  plans  to  Mr.  Liston, 
the  British  minister,  was  referred  by  him  directly  to  the  British  cabinet.  The  cautious 
mystery  of  the  American  senator  led  to  his  detectioii,  o'lil,  havmg  been  found  guilty  of 
cntcrtauiing  the  treasonable  plot,  he  was  unanimously  expelled  from  the  United  States 
Senate. — Sec  Marliois's  Louisiana,  p.  1G3-16S.  Sec,  also,  Blount's  letter  to  a  confed- 
erate namml  Carey,  American  Stato  Papers,  vol.  iii.,  p.  335,  Boston  edition.  Martin's 
Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  139. 

Subject*  of  Great  Britain  residing  in  Florida  and  in  the  Natclioz  District,  and  whose 
names  were  on  tlie  British  pension  list,  were  doubtless  privy  to  this  contcm]>lated  en- 
kOn'rise.  Colonel  Hutchens  had  i)roposed  to  Lieutenant  Pope,  early  in  1797,  to  en- 
gage in  the  enterprise  of  capturing  Governor  Gayoso,  and  conveying  him  secretly  to 
the  ChickasA  nation,  and  to  capture  Fort  Panmure  with  volunteers  wlio  were  ready 
to  engage  in  the  undertaking.  Mr.  Rapelje,  a  British  subject,  supjioscd  to  be  coimcct- 
ed  in  Blount's  conspiracy,  and  in  the  English  interest,  rame  to  Colonel  Hutchens  and 
spent  several  days  witli  him  about  this  time,  after  which  ho  proceeded  to  Mobile  and 
Pensanola.  At  the  latter  ;)lace,  he  remained  in  confidential  intercourse  witli  the  Brit- 
ish house  of  Pantoii,  Leslie,  &  Co.,  Indian  traders,  until  the  explosion  of  Blount's 
schemes. — Bee  EUicott's  Journal,  p.  CI,  65,  and  73. 


A.D.  1797.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


528 


At  one  time  Gayoso  alleged  that,  as  the  treaty  of  Madrid  did 
not  specify  the  "  condition"  in  which  the  posts  were  to  be  de- 
livered, it  became  necessary  to  wait  until  instructions  on  thai 
point  should  be  received  from  the  king.  If  the  king  directed 
them  to  be  delivered  with  all  the  ordnance  and  stores,  or  if  he 
required  them  to  be  dismantled  before  delivery,  he  only  waited 
to  execute  his  pleasure  ;  and  in  the  mean  time,  it  would  be  nec- 
essary to  dispatch  an  envoy  to  General  Wayne,  commander- 
in-chief,  with  a  request  that  he  would  not  urge  the  delivery 
until  instructions  should  arrive  from  the  king. 

At  another  time  he  alleged  that,  as  the  treaty  contained  no 
guarantee  of  property  to  those  who  desired  to  retire  beyond  the 
American  jurisdiction,  it  would  be  necessary  to  settle  that  point 
by  a  new  treaty.  At  another  time  it  was  seriously  urged  that 
a  scrupulous  observance  of  the  treaty  of  Madrid  could  not  be 
demanded,  because  the  United  States  had  not  acted  in  good 
faith  toward  Spain  in  conceding  to  Great  Britain,  by  the  treaty 
of  London,  November  19th,  1794,  the  free  navigation  of  the 
Mississippi,  although  nearly  a  year  previously.* 

In  the  early  period  of  the  correspondence,  before  the  arrival 
of  Lieutenant  Pope,  the  Spanish  governor  had  endeavored  to 
alarm  the  American  commissioner  by  apprehensions  of  Indian 
hostility,  alleged  to  have  been  excited  by  the  presence  of  Amer- 
ican troops.  To  give  a  plausibility  to  the  rumor,  and  to  excite 
apprehension  of  danger  to  be  encountered  from  that  quarter, 
swarms  of  drunken  Indians  were  made  to  parade  the  town 
with  every  demonstration  of  displeasure  at  the  presence  of  the 
American  troops.  Several  times  the  savages  paraded  before 
the  American  intrenchments  with  drawn  knives,  and  with  the 
most  threatening  demonstrations.  To  quiet  them  into  neutral- 
ity until  the  arrival  of  the  re-enforcement  under  Lieutenant 
Pope,  Colonel  Fllicott  was  obliged  to  conciliate  their  hostility 
by  distributing  rations  among  them,  together  with  such  pres- 
ents as  their  cupidity  might  fancy. 

Only  a  few  weeks  elapsed  before  it  was  ascertained  beyond 
doubt  that  emissaries  had  been  sent  to  the  neighboring  tribes 
to  rouse  their  vengeance  against  the  extension  of  the  Federal 
jurisdiction  and  the  introduction  cf  troops.f 

The  object  of  the  Spanish  governor  was  delay,  in  the  vain 


•  Ellicott'i  Journal;  p.  94-96. 
edition. 


Also,  Aiuericau  State  Papers,  Foreign  AfTnirg,  fulio 

t  800  Ellirott. 


524 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


hope  that  some  fortunate  event  might  yet  avert  the  necessity 
of  surrendering  the  country.  It  was  with  regret  the  Spanish 
authorities  beheld  this  presage  of  the  entire  loss  of  Louisiana 
in  the  surrender  of  this  important  portion  of  its  territory.  Be- 
lieving that  all  hope  in  the  West  had  not  yet  fled,  the  govern- 
or-general had  caused  these  vexatious  delays,  until  his  emissa- 
ry should  return  from  Detroit  and  report  the  state  of  feeling 
upon  the  Ohio  and  its  tributaries.  Moreover,  new  hope  had 
sprung  up  since  the  arrival  of  the  American  commissioner ;  for 
General  Wayne  had  died,  and  General  Wilkinson  had  succeed- 
ed as  commander-in-chief  in  the  Northwest.  Some  event  might 
yet  transpire  to  defeat  the  obligations  of  the  treaty,  and  secure 
to  Spain  the  integrity  of  Louisiana. 

At  length  the  people  became  highly  excited  at  the  delays 
and  perfidy  of  the  Spaniards  for  deferring  the  fulfillment  of  the 
treaty  stipulations.  The  district  north  of  the  line  of  demarka- 
tion  contained  at  this  time  about  four  thousand  inhabitants,  the 
greater  portion  of  whom  were  emigrants  from  the  United 
States,  or  the  remains  of  former  British  colonies  from  the  At- 
lantic provinces.  Many  had  emigrated  from  Kentucky  and 
Tennessee,  for  the  express  purpose  of  becoming  citizens  under 
the  American  government.  Most  of  them  became  impatient 
for  the  departure  of  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  the  establish- 
ment of  the  free  government  of  the  United  States.  Settle- 
ments extended  from  the  Bayou  Pierre  south  to  the  line  of  de- 
markation,  and  eastward  to  the  sources  of  the  Bayou  Pierre, 
Cole's  Creek,  St.  Catharine,  Homochitto,  and  Buffalo.  Many 
of  them  had  taken  an  active  part  in  evincing  their  opposition 
to  the  continuance  of  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  had  thus 
rendered  themselves  highly  obnoxious  to  their  resentment. 
Some  had  evinced  a  willingness  to  attempt  their  expulsion  by 
Ibrce,  and  to  capture  Fort  Panmure  itself. 

The  governor-general's  proclamation  of  the  24th  of  May 
was  intended  to  quiet  public  excitement  and  to  allay  fears  of 
future  vengeance  from  the  Spanish  authorities,  by  assuring  the 
people  that  the  terms  of  the  treaty  would  be  faithfully  perform- 
ed so  soon  as  the  danger  of  the  threatened  British  invasion 
should  have  passed.  But  the  proclamation  failed  to  produce 
the  desired  effect ;  instead  of  calming  the  excitement.  Colonel 
Ellicott  observes,  after  the  proclamation,  "  the  public  mind 
might  be  compared  to  inflammable  gas,  which  required  only  a 
fipark  to  produce  an  explosion." 


A.D.  1707.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MI8SI3SIPPL 


525 


Colonel  Ellicott,  and  those  attached  to  his  commission,  con- 
tinued to  use  every  prudent  means  for  tranquilizing  the  people, 
and  for  inducing  them  quietly  and  peaceably  to  await  the 
regular  action  of  the  Spanish  authorities. 

Yet  the  people  perceived  no  movement  for  the  speedy  evacu- 
ation of  the  military  posts,  or  the  surrender  of  the  country. 
Many  despaired  of  seeing  the  American  authority  established 
in  the  district ;  and  others,  having,  by  their  zeal  and  activity 
in  favor  of  the  Federal  jurisdiction,  rendered  themselves  ob- 
noxious to  the  resentment  of  the  Spanish  authorities,  contem- 
plated a  remova\  back  to  the  Western  States.  To  calm  these 
apprehensions,  Gayoso  gave  notice  that  he  liad  received  from 
the  Baron  de  Carondelet,  governor  of  Louisiana,  instructions 
for  the  removal  of  the  artillery  and  military  stores  from  the 
forts  which  were  north  of  the  lim;  of  demarkation. 

Although  the  popular  excitement  and  dissatislaction  were 
extreme,  and  the  inclination  to  resist  was  strong,  yet  there  was 
no  open  resistance  until  the  9th  day  of  June.  On  this  day  Mr. 
Hannah,  a  preacher  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  and  an  Ameri- 
can citizen,  was  seized  by  the  Spanish  authorities,  and,  under 
some  pretext,  was  confined  in  a  small  guard-house  within  the 
Spanish  fort,  with  his  feet  in  the  stocks.  This  was  like  fire  to 
an  explosive  train.  The  people  considered  this  act  an  infringe- 
ment of  the  liberty  of  the  people  of  the  United  States.  If  not 
so,  it  certainly  evinced  a  determination  to  enforce  vigorously 
the  authority  of  Spain  in  the  country.  Under  this  impression 
they  flew  to  arms,  and  the  commandant  and  his  principal  of- 
ficers, with  their  families,  were  compelled  to  take  refiige  in  the 
Spanish  fort.  The  people  organized  themselves  into  military 
companies,  and  chose  officers  to  coir.  n.  and  them.  An  instantane- 
ous change  had  taken  place,  and  "  in  the  short  space  of  less 
than  ten  hours  the  authority  of  the  governor  was  confined  in 
the  small  compass  of  the  fort."* 

The  excitement  spread  into  the  surrounding  country :  public 
meetings  were  held,  and  violent  measures  contempliited.  At 
this  time  Governor  Gayoso,  through  his  fort  major,  Stephen 
Minor,  requested  a  private  interview  with  the  American  com- 

*  Gayoso,  in  most  of  the  correspondence  and  transactions  relative  to  tlio  <lelivcrj'  of 
the  forts  and  the  surrender  of  ';■  ■  r  atchez  District,  is  called  "govenior"  hy  way  of 
euiiiiencf  ;  yet  up  to  August,  1797,  he  was  licutenantgovenior  of  the  Natchez  depend- 
ences. After  August,  1797,  he  succeeded  the  Burou  de  Carondelet  as  govenior  of  Lou- 
isiana and  the  Floridas. 


520 


UISTOSY   OF   TUB 


[book  IV. 


missioner.  The  latter  determined  to  have  no  communication 
with  the  Spanish  governor  except  such  as  was  strictly  official. 
Lieutenant  Pope  further  informed  him  that  he  should  "  repel  by 
force  any  attempt  made  to  imprison  those  who  claim  the  priv- 
ileges of  citizens  of  the  United  States."  He  also  notified  the 
people  of  his  intentions,  and  assured  them  of  his  ♦♦  protection 
and  support  against  any  arbitrary  military  force  v/hich  might 
be  brought  to  operate  against  them,  or  in  any  wise  to  infringe 
their  rights  as  American  citizens." 

At  this  time  it  was  supposed  Gayoso  might  order  re-enforce- 
ments from  other  posts  on  the  river  to  aid  in  maintaining  his 
authority.  Lieutenant  Pope  had  resolved  to  permit  no  such 
re-enforcement,  and  he  called  on  the  people  to  sustain  him  in 
repelling  any  attempt  to  re-enforce  the  garrison  in  Fort  Pan- 
mure.* 

On  the  14th  of  June,  Governor  Gayoso  issued  his  proclama- 
tion, exhorting  the  people  to  a  quiet  and  peaceable  submission 
to  the  authority  of  his  Catholic  majesty  until  the  difficulties 
between  the  two  governments  could  be  properly  arranged. 
At  the  same  time,  he  promised  the  utmost  lenity,  and  u  pardon 
to  all  who  repented  of  their  misdeeds,  and,  as  an  evidence  of 
repentance,  abstained  from  all  acts  calculated  to  disturb  the 
public  peace. 

The  people,  already  highly  'rritated  by  delays  and  disap- 

•  Letter  of  Lieutcaant  Pope,  traiiBinittcd  by  Colonel  Hutchens  to  the  Dcimrtment 
of  State. — American  State  Papera,  Boston  edition,  vol.  iii.,  p.  350. 

"Xatcticz  Camp,  June  12M,  1797. 
" FkllowCitizen8  of  the  District  of  Natchk^, — 
"  Having  received  infumintion  that  a  imiiibcr  <S  you  will  bo  cu'Iecteil  at  my  friend 
Bcalk's,  in  conformity  to  an  indirect  invitation  Rent  to  you  for  tiiat  jiur|iose,  1  have  now 
positively  to  make  the  dec' .ration  to  you  that  I  have  made  this  evcnini;  to  Govemor 
Gayoso,  that  I  will,  at  all  hazards,  protect  the  citizens  of  tlie  United  Stnt(!.s  from  every 
act  of  hostility ;  I  mean  such  as  reside  north  of  the  thirty-first  dcgrc!e  of  uortli  latitude, 
or  within  thirty-ninu  miles  duo  snutli  of  Natchez*.  I  now,  therefore,  call  on  you  in  tlio 
most  solenui  maimer  to  come  forward,  anserf  your  rights,  and  you  may  rely  on  my  sin- 
core  co-operation  Ui  accom|)li8h  that  desirable  object. 

"  I  shall  expect  yonr  assistance  to  repel  any  troops  or  hostile  parties  that  may  make 
an  attempt  to  land  fur  the  purpose  of  re-enforcing  this  garrison,  or  fur  other  piu-posea 
detrimental  to  the  inliabitonts  of  tliis  couiitry.  Piguct  S.  Popk, 

"  Commanding  United  States  Troops,  Natchez." 
"  From  tho  present  alanuing  situation  of  this  country,  I  fully  approve  of  Lieutenant 
Pope's  letter  of  Ihis  date  to  his  fellow-citizens  assembled  at  Mr.  Bealk's. 

"Andrkvit  Ellicott, 
"June  12th,  1797."  "  Commissioner  of  United  States." 

"A true  copy.    Examined  per  Thomas  M.  Gkken." 
— 8oG  Americou  State  Papers,  "  Foreign  AlFairg."    Also,  EUicott's  Journal  p.  96,  97, 


A.D.  1797.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


627 


pointed  hopes,  took  great  exceptions  to  the  word  "repent- 
ance," as  highly  offensive  to  free  citizens  of  the  United  States. 
Things  now  assumed  a  serious  aspect,  and  the  opposition  to 
Spanish  authority  had  taken  a  regular  form  of  rebellion.  A 
number  of  respectable  militia  companies  were  organized,  and 
ready  to  take  the  field  at  the  first  notice,  and  open  hostilities 
seemed  inevitable.  Both  parties  were  in  a  continual  state  of 
preparation  to  repel  force  by  force.  Gayoso  made  great  ex- 
ertions to  re-enforce  his  garrison,  but  without  success,  while 
the  militia  were  drilling  throughout  the  settlements.  T'onfined 
to  the  walls  of  his  fortress,  and  too  weak  for  offensive  oj)era- 
tions,  he  interceded  with  the  American  commissioner  to  use  his 
influence  in  calming  the  i)opular  excitement.*  But  (Jolonel  El- 
licott  felt  little  sympathy  for  the  unpleasant  position  which  ho 
had  brought  upon  himself. 

In  the  mean  time  a  public  meeting  had  been  announced,  to  be 
held  at  Benjamin  Bealk's,  on  l!ie  Nashville  road,  eight  miles 
from  Natchez.  This  meeting  was  assemble*'  on  the  I20th  of 
June,  and  was  attended  by  many  of  the  inhabitants.  The  sub- 
ject of  the  existing  difficulties  was  discussed,  and  the  meeting 
dispersed  after  appointing  a  "committee  of  public  safety,"  con- 
sisting of  seven  prominent  men,  to  represent  the  people  there- 
after in  any  negotiation  with  the  Spanish  authorities.  No 
measures  adopted  by  the  Spanish  governor  should  have  the 
force  of  law  until  the  concurrence  of  this  committee  should 
render  it  obligatory.! 

Up  to  this  time,  the  Spanish  commandant,  as  well  as  the 
American,  kept  each  an  active  patrol  continually  on  duty ; 
and  during  the  greater  portion  of  the  time,  since  the  first  of 
May,  a  heavy  piece  of  ordnance  in  the  Spanish  fort  had  been 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  American  commissioner's  tent,  which 
was  in  full  view. 

On  the  18th  of  June,  while  all  was  excitement  and  appre- 
hension, the  governor,  confined  within  the  narrow  limits  of  the 
fort,  desired  an  interview  with  the  American  commissioner  at 
the  house  of  Captain  Minor.  To  meet  this  appointment,  Ga- 
yoso, in  great  trepidation,  "  having  left  the  fort  by  a  circuitous 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  v>- 1**".  I'l^.    Also,  see  EUicott's  Joumnl,  p.  85-116. 

t  The  (^oinmittco  of  Public  Safety  was  cximposed  of  the  foUowini?  persons,  viz. :  An- 
tduiiy  Hutchcns,  Bernard  Liiitot,  Isaac  GRJlliarvl,  Cato  West,  William  ilatlifi',  Gabriel 
Bcnoist,  Olid  Joseph  Bernard,  to  which  Colonel  Ellioutt  and  Liouttiuant  Pope  were 
tuiauiinously  added.— EUicott's  Jourual,  p.  114. 


528 


lliaXORY   OP   THE 


[nooK  IV. 


route,  made  his  way  through  thickets  and  cane-brakes  to  the 
rear  or  north  side  of  Minor's  plantation,  and  thence  through 
a  corn-field  to  the  back  of  the  house,  and  entered  the  parlor 
undiscovered."  Such  were  the  visible  marks  of  anxiety  in  his 
person,  that  Colonel  Ellicott  says  his  feelings  never  were  more 
aflected  than  when  he  beheld  the  governor.  "  The  humiliating 
state  to  which  he  was  reduced  by  a  people  whose  affections  he 
had  courted,  and  whose  gratitude  he  expected,  had  made  a 
strong  and  visible  impression  upon  his  mind  and  countenance. 
Having  been  educated  with  high  ideas  of  command  and  pre- 
rogative, served  only  to  render  his  present  situation  more  poig- 
nant and  distressing.*" 

The  "  Committee  of  Public  Safety,"  agreeably  to  their  in- 
structions, presented  themselves  before  Gayoso  in  their  official 
capacity,  for  his  recognition  and  approbation;  He  did  not  hes- 
itate to  recognize  them  as  representatives  of  the  peojjle,  and 
cheerfully  acceded  to  their  demand  that  none  of  the  people 
should  be  injured  or  prosecuted  for  the  part  they  had  taken  in 
the  lute  movements  against  the  Spanish  authority ;  also,  that 
they  should  be  exempt  from  serving  in  the  Spanish  militia,  un- 
less in  case  of  riots  or  Indian  hostilities.  The  pi-oceedings  of 
the  public  meeting,  the  recognition  of  the  "  committee"  by  the 
governor,  and  his  acquiescence  in  their  demands,  had  all  tend- 
ed greatly  to  quiet  public  apprehension  and  to  allay  the  popu- 
lar excitement. 

Yet  there  were  persons  in  the  committee  whose  fidelity  to 
the  United  States  was  suspected  by  Colonel  Ellicott ;  and  one 
of  them  was  particularly  objectionable  to  him  and  Lieutenant 
Pope.  In  order  to  insure  harmony,  he  prevailed  upon  the  gov- 
ernor to  dissolve  the  committee,  and  to  authorize  the  election 
of  another,  by  proclamation,  which  should  be  permanent.  A 
new  committee,  consisting  of  nine  members,  was  accordingly 
elected  about  the  first  of  July,  "  jiermanent"  in  its  character, 
and  created  by  virtue  of  the  Spanish  authority.  The  organi- 
zation of  this  committee  was  highly  gratifying  to  Colonel  Elli- 
cott, who  declared  that  "this  coh.fvittee  was  the  finishing- 
stroke  to  the  Spanish  authority  and  jurisdiction."! 

•  EUirott,  p.  109-113. 

t  The  penuaiiont  committee  was  composed  of  Joseph  Bonianl,  Judtfc  Peter  B.  Bruin. 
Dauiel  Clarke,  Gabriel  Beiioigt,  Philander  Smith,  Isaac  Gailliord,  llowr  Dixon,  Will 
iam  Ratlift",  and  Frederic  Kimball,  all  tinn  ilepublicans.  aud  strontrly  attiu'lu-d  to  the 
United  States,  except  F.  Kimball,  who  was  deemed  ujubtful.    Joseph  Bernard  presided 


A.D.   1797.]  VALLEY   OP   THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


629 


One  of  the  most  active  opposers  of  the  measures  and  politry 
of  the  American  commissioner  was  Colonel  Anthony  Hutchens, 
who  sustained  the  general  policy  of  Gayoso  and  highly  censured 
the  course  of  Lieutenant  Pope. 

Colonel  Hutchens  had  been  a  loyal  subject  of  the  crown  of 
Great  Britain  during  the  British  dominion  in  West  Florida, 
had  enjoyed  the  post  of  confidential  correspondent  to  the  Brit- 
ish minister,  and  was  enrolled  on  the  pension  list  as  a  reduced 
half-pay  British  officer,  up  to  the  period  of  the  establishment 
of  the  Federal  jurisdiction,  when  he  acquiesced  and  became  a 
valuable  citizen. 

The  efforts  of  Colonel  Hutchens,  during  the  early  periods  of 
the  popular  excitements  in  175)7,  no  doubt  had  a  salutary  influ- 
ence in  checking  the  outbreak  of  popular  indignation  in  acts  of 
open  violence.  Without  some  such  modifying  influence,  the 
people,  irritated  by  delays  and  apprehension  of  personal  danger 
from  Spanish  perfidy,  would  scarcely  have  been  restrained.* 

During  the  autumn,  for  the  health  and  comfort  of  his  men, 
Colonel  Ellicott  removed  his  cori)s  and  escort  to  the  banks  of 
the  St.  Catharme,  about  seven  miles  northeast  of  Natchez, 
where  he  erected  huts  for  his  men  near  a  beautiful  spring  which 
gushes  out  from  a  dell  in  the  northern  limits  of  the  present  town 
of  Washington,  and  which,  for  many  years  afterward,  was 
known  as  "  Ellicott's  Spring."  He  remained  at  this  encamp- 
ment until  the  27th  of  September,  and  during  his  stay  he  made 
the  survey  and  plat  of  the  present  town  of  Washington  for  the 
proprietor,  John  Foster.f 

On  the  26th  day  of  July,  Gayoso  received  his  commission  xs 
Governor-general  of  Louisiana  and  Florida,  and  successor  of 
the  Baron  Carondelet,  who  was  promoted  to  the  government 
of  the  Mexican  provinces.  Four  days  afterward  he  departed 
for  New  Orleans,  having  appointed  Captain  Stephen  Minor 
temporary  commandant  of  the  foi  t. 

vrith  >-r<  lit  ability  aiid  general  satisfaction,  until  the  SOth  nf  September,  when  he  died, 
uid  v/im  fluncecded  by  Gabriel  Beuuist,  whu  digcharu'ud  the  duties  of  preaidi'iit  witii 
singular  ability,  assiduity,  and  integrity.  For  the  (character  of  those  wiio  opiKittod  Uic 
Federal  jurisdiction,  see  Ellicott's  Journal,  p.  116,  117,  15a.     Also,  Stoddart,  ji.  9l-'.Mi. 

*  Colonel  Hutchens  was  very  active  in  opposing  the  movements  of  Colonel  Ellicott 
and  Lieutenant  Pope.  These  public  olticers,  irritated  by  delays,  and  well  apjirised  of 
the  secret  mclives  which  prompted  the  otHcial  conduct  of  the  Spanish  governor,  were 
sometimes  induced  to  transcend  tlie  bounds  of  a  prudent,  dignified  intercourse ;  and  as 
such  they  received  the  censure  of  some  American  authorities,  who  were  not  fully  ac- 
quainted with  all  the  causes  of  excitement  and  delay  on  the  port  of  the  Spanish  au- 
Ihorities.  t  Sue  Ellicott's  Journal,  Appendix,  p.  17,  IS. 

Vol.  L — L  l 


530 


HISTORY    OF   TUB 


[UUUK  IV. 


Soon  afterward.  Colonel  Grandprc  was  appointed  tf»  the  of- 
fice of  lieuteiKint-ji^overnor  at  Natchez ;  hut  his  presence  hein<^ 
unacceptuhle  to  the  majority  of  the  people,  and  at  the  re(|nest 
of  the  permanent  committee,  the  governor  permitting;  Captain 
Minor  to  continue  in  the  exercise  of  his  duties  as  civil  and  iniU 
itary  commandant,  Colonel  Grandpre  did  not  make  his  iip[)ear- 
ance  at  Natchez.  The  powers  of  the  permanent  committee 
were  duly  recognized  hy  Captain  Minor;  and  harmony  ht'in«« 
again  restored  in  the  district.  Lieutenant  Pope,  with  his  com- 
mand, retired  a  few  miles  into  the  country.* 

Most  of  those  who  had  been  opposed  to  the  extension  of  the 
Federal  jurisdiction,  finding  their  wishes  and  (»ppositi»)n  una- 
vailing, tpiietly  submitted  to  the  established  change. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  commander-in-chief.  General  Wilkin- 
son, having  been  apprised  of  the  delay  in  regard  to  the  evacu- 
ation of  the  forts,  determined  to  re-enforce  the  advanced  guard 
at  Natchez.  For  this  purpose,  early  in  the  winter,  he  dis- 
patched Captain  Isaac  Guion,  a  veteran  of  the  Revolutionary 
war,  with  a  re-enforcement  from  Fort  Massac,  with  orders  to 
descend  the  Mississippi  to  Natchez,  and  there  to  assume  the 
command  in  that  quarter.  Before  the  close  of  December,  Cap- 
tain Guion,  with  his  detachment,  arrived  at  Natchez,  and  as- 
sumed the  command.  His  first  eflbrts  were  directed  toward 
the  supj)ression  of  any  public  manifestation  of  disrespect  to  the 
Spanish  authorities,  and  to  allay  any  remains  of  popular  ill-will 
which  might  exist  toward  the  Spanish  troops.  He  proceeded, 
also,  to  disconcert  what  he  considered  the  improper  measures 
of  the  permanent  committee,  which  he  rudely  threatened  to 
disperse  by  miliary  force. 

Captain  Guion,  no  doubt  incredulous  of  the  Spanish  perfidy, 
and  ignorant  of  their  many  pretexts  for  delay,  deemed  it  proper 
to  exalt  the  Spanish  authorities  to  a  decent  respect  in  the  eyes 
of  the  people.  Yet,  having  resumed  their  former  consequence, 
and  having  no  further  pretext  for  delay,  they  still  deferred  the 
final  evacuation  of  the  forts  and  the  survey  for  the  line  of  de- 
markation,t  until  Captain  Guion  himself  became  impatient. 

*  Colonel  Grondprr,  a  Spanish  officer,  wna  appointed  to  the  govonimont  of  tlie  Natch- 
ez District  in  November,  1797,  as  successor  of  Uayoso ;  bnt  the  permanent  committoo 
unanimously  adopted  a  resolution  dcclarini;  that  his  presence  would  not  be  acceptable, 
and  notified  the  ifovenior-freneral  accordingly,  and  Colonel  Grand|)re  never  made  his 
appearance  at  Natchez.  He  was  afterward  api>ointcd  to  the  government  of  Baton 
llouge  by  the  Spanish  authorities.'— S  c  EUicott,  p.  ICl. 

t  Captain  Guion  was  a  great  adi  ■.  w  of  General  Wilkinson,  and  no  friend  of  Gen- 


A.D.  1708.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE    MI8HIHBIPPI. 


581 


[A.D.  1798.]  Finally,  on  the  10th  of  January,  1798,  nearly 
eleven  months  after  his  arrival,  (Colonel  Ellicott  received  notice 
from  the  governor-general  at  New  Orleans  that  ofticial  in- 
structions from  his  ('atholic  majesty  had  heen  received  direct- 
ing the  surrender  of  the  territory  north  of  the  line  of  demarka- 
tion,  and  the  evacuation  of  the  forts  north  of  the  thirty-fust 
parallel  of  latitude,  agreeably  to  the  treaty  stipulations.  The 
post  at  the  mouth  of  Wolf  River,  near  the  present  site  of  Mem- 
phis, had  been  dismantled  and  evacuated  during  the  preceding 
autunm,  and  the  only  forts  now  to  be  evacuated  were  those  of 
Nogales  and  Natchez. 

This  order,  it  will  be  perceived,  had  not  been  issued  until 
the  last  ray  of  hope  had  vanished,  and  Thomas  Powers  had 
made  his  final  report  against  the  practicability  of  a  separation 
of  the  Western  States,  and  all  prospect  of  success  had  been 
abandoned. 

Yet  delays  were  not  terminated.  Since  instructions  had 
been  received,  January,  February,  and  the  greater  portion  of 
March  had  elapsed,  and  the  Spanish  garrisons  still  occupied 
the  forts.  At  length,  on  the  23d  of  March,  when  Captain  Guion 
had  almost  determined  to  take  the  forts  by  assault,  the  Fort 
Nogales  was  evacuated,  and  the  garrison  descended  the  river 
to  Natchez.  Here  it  retired  into  Fort  Panmure,  and  remained 
for  six  days  longer,  previous  to  its  final  evacuation.  During 
this  time,  the  commander  studiously  concealed  the  time  of  his 
intended  departure,  A/hile  Captain  Guion  looked  with  impa- 
tience to  the  near  approach  of  the  first  day  of  April,  which  he 
declared  should  not  witness  the  Spanish  garrison  in  the  fort. 

At  length,  on  the  20th  of  March,  about  midnight,  the  Span- 
ish drums  began  to  sound  the  note  of  preparation  ;  and  at 
four  o'clock  next  morning,  having  previously  sent  the  artillery, 
stores,  and  baggage  on  board  their  boats  and  galleys,  the 
troops  marched  out  of  the  fort  to  the  river  bank.  Before  the 
morning  light  they  had  embarked,  and  were  several  miles 
below  Natchez,  on  their  voyage  to  New  Orleans.     The  fort 


eral  Wnyne.  Tlie  dispntch  bomo  by  him  to  Gtovemor  Oayoro  from  General  Wilkinson 
roiitaineil  the  fullowing  sciitcnou,  which  GayoHO  qauted  to  Culunel  Ellicott,  in  \n»  uHbrts 
to  assuciato  Captain  Guion  in  thu  commission  for  running  tiic  boundary  line,  viz. :  "  Tliis 
officer's  experience  and  g<x)d  sense,  and  the  powers  with  which  he  is  elevated  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  conspire  to  promise  a  happy  result  to  his  command,  in 
which  I  flatter  myself  I  shall  not  bo  disappointed." — See  Ellicott's  Journal,  p.  165- 
175.    Also,  Wilkinson's  Memoirs,  vol.  i.,  p.  434. 


532 


HISTORY    OF    TUB 


[book  IV. 


was  stripped  of  its  teiiora,  niul  the  ^»rito  was  thrown  open. 
Thus,  instead  of  retiring  amid  the  sahites  of  the  Anierican 
tr<M>i)s  in  open  day,  they  retired  by  night,  as  if  cautiously  re- 
treating from  a  powerful  enemy.* 

Soon  after  the  evacuation  of  the  fort  at  Natchez,  Governor 
Ciayoso  issued  his  orders  from  New  Orleans,  directing  tlie 
commissiimers  on  the  part  of  Spain,  Stephen  Minor  an<l  Sir 
William  Dunbar,  to  repair  to  the  Bayou  Tunica  and  join  the 
American  commissioner  in  opening  the  line  of  demarkation. 
Colonel  Ellicott,  with  his  woodsmen  and  escort,  in  the  mean 
time,  repaired  to  Tunica  Bayou,  six  miles  below  Fort  Adams, 
;nui  having  located  his  camp,  commenced  his  astronomical  ob- 
servations on  the  0th  of  May.  He  proceeded  to  run  and  mark 
the  line;  and  on  the  21st  of  May  he  was  joined  by  Captain 
Mint>r,  with  a  party  of  woodsmen ;  and  on  the  20th,  by  Mr. 
Dunbar,  astronomical  commissioner  for  his  Catholic  majesty. 
On  the  21st  of  June,  Governor  Gayoso,  with  his  ■secretary  and 
several  Spanish  officers,  joined  the  commission  at  their  camp, 
twelve  miles  east  of  the  river.f  The  principal  surveyor  on 
the  part  of  his  Catholic  majesty  was  Thomas  Powers,  late  em- 
issary to  the  Ohio  ;  on  the  part  of  the  United  States  was  Major 
Thomas  Freeman,  subsequently  United  States  surveyor-gener- 
al south  of  Tennessee.  Gayoso  approved  the  manner  in  which 
the  work  had  progressed,  and  directed  its  continuation.  It 
progressed  regularly  until  the  last  of  August,  when  Sir  William 
Dunbar  resigned  his  commission  and  returned  home.J  On  ac- 
count of  Indian  disturbances,  the  line  across  East  Florida  was 
not  completed  until  the  following  year.  After  the  resignation 
of  his  colleague,  Captain  Minor  continued  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  principal  commissioner  on  the  part  of  his  Catholic 
majesty.§ 

In  the  mean  time,  by  an  act  of  Congress  approved  April 
7th,  1798,  the  territory  surrendered  had  been  erected  into  a 

•  The  Spnnianl'  st>i(lionsly  concealed  the  time  of  their  intended  de[iarture.  On  the 
29th  of  March,  late  in  the  evenintr,  Colonel  Ellicott,  through  a  confidential  channel, 
learned  that  the  evacuation  was  to  take  place  that  nii;ht,  or  next  momini,'  before  day. 
Li  consequence  of  which  information  he  roso  very  early  next  moniing,  and  at  four  o'clock 
A.M.  walked  toward  the  fort,  which  he  approached  just  as  the  rear-jjuard  was  passing 
the  ({iites.  The  gate  being  left;  open,  he  entered  the  fort,  and  from  the  parapet  ho  had 
the  pleasure  of  witnessing  the  boats  and  galleys  leave  tlie  shore  and  get  under  way. 
Before  daylight  tlic  whole  fleet  was  out  of  sight. — EUicott's  Journal,  p.  17G.  Also,  Mar- 
tin's Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  ISfi.  f  Ellicott,  Appendix,  p.  49. 

t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  158.    Alio,  Ellicott,  Appendix,  p.  56,  57. 

^  Ellicott,  p.  160. 


A.D.  1708.] 


\ALmY    OP   THE    MIBBISSIPI'I. 


533 


territorial  government,  to  he  known  nnd  designated  as  the 
"Mississi[)pi  Territory."  Its  houndaries  were  the  Mis.sissippi 
on  the  west,  the  thirty-first  parallel  of  latitude  on  the  south, 
and  on  the  north  a  line  drawn  due  east  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Yazoo  totheChattahoochy  River. 

Uy  an  act  of  Congress  approved  May  10th,  the  Mississipjn 
Territory  was  organized  into  a  territorial  government  of  the 
"first  grade."  The  first  territorial  governor,  Winthrop  Sar- 
gent, formei"  secretary  of  the  Northwestern  Territory,  and  the 
territorial  judges,  arrived  at  Natchez  on  the  flth  day  of  August. 
1708,  and  on  the  20th  day  of  the  same  month  General  Wilkin- 
son arrived  with  the  Federal  army,  and  established  his  head- 
quarters at  Natchez.  Soon  afterward  he  established  the  post 
of  "Fort  Adams,"  six  miles  above  the  line  of  demarkation.* 

Governor  Sargent  made  his  residence  near  Natchez,  and 
proceeded  to  establish  the  Federal  government  in  the  country, 
as  he  had  heretofore  done  under  Governor  St.  Clair  in  the 
Northwestern  Territory.f 

Thus  terminated  the  train  of  vexatious  difliculties  and  em- 
barrassments from  the  Spanish  authorities,  originating  from 
the  treaty  of  1783,  and  thus  began  the  "Mississippi  Territory," 
which  was  not  admitted  into  the  Federal  Union  until  Decem- 
ber, 1817,|;  after  a  tedious  probation  of  nearly  twenty  years 
under  the  territorial  grades. 

It  may  he  well  to  take  a  brief  retrospect  of  the  court  in- 
trigues and  official  manccuvers  on  the  part  of  Spain  in  execu- 
ting the  stipulations  of  this  treaty.  Never  were  Spanish  du- 
plicity and  perfidy  more  flagrant  than  in  the  transactions  of 
the  years  1706  and  1707,  in  relation  to  the  surrender  of  the 
Natchez  District  and  the  evacuation  of  the  military  posts,  pre- 
paratory to  the  establishment  of  the  line  of  demarkation.  All 
the  delays  in  the  accomplishment  of  these  objects  were  pre- 
concerted and  studiously  conducted,  in  the  vain  hope  that  fu- 
ture events  would  so  transpire  that  Spain  would  still  retain 
possession  of  this  portion  of  Louisiana.  The  Spanish  court 
still  believed  "  that  the  western  people  might  yet  be  induced 
to  separate  from  their  Atlantic  brethren,"  and  hence  the  sur- 
render was  delayed  to  the  lapt  moment. 

The  treaty  of  Madrid  had  been  signed  and  ratified  as  a  last 


"  Ellicott,  p.  186.     Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  156,  157.     See,  ako,  Wilkinaon's  Memoirs,  vol. 
i.,  p.  434.  t  Seo  book  v.,  chap,  ix.,  of  this  work.  t  Idem,  chap.  xii. 


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534 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


resort,  the  only  means  of  avoiding  an  open  rupture  with  the 
United  States,  and  the  consequent  invasion  of  Louisiana.  The 
Spanish  king  never  intended  to  fulfill  the  stipulations  of  the 
treaty,  if  compliance  were  avoidable.  At  the  very  time  that 
his  minister  was  negotiating  the  treaty,  his  pensioned  emissa- 
ries were  busily  employed  in  sowing  the  seeds  of  revolt  in  the 
western  country,  and  were  endeavoring,  by  secret  intrigue,  to 
produce  a  separation  of  the  States  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee 
from  the  Federal  Union.*  On  this  errand  Thomas  Powers 
had  been  sent  repeatedly  to  Kentucky  and  the  Ohio  region, 
with  authority  to  contract,  on  the  part  of  the  Spanish  king,  for 
the  liberal  distribution  of  money  to  any  amount  not  exceeding 
one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  to  be  appropriated  as  he  might 
see  proper.  He  was  also  authorized  to  promise  an  equal 
amount  to  procure  arms  and  military  stores,  besides  twenty 
pieces  of  artillery,  with  powder  and  ball,  to  enable  them  to  re- 
sist the  Federal  power,  provided  they  would  form  a  "govern- 
ment wholly  unconnected  with  the  Atlantic  States."! 

All  this  the  king  would  cheerfully  have  done  to  aid  the  west- 
em  people  to  absolve  themselves  from  their  dependence  upon 
the  Atlantic  States,  and  to  unite  themselves  with  the  provinces 
of  Spain.  The  only  consideration  required  by  the  King  of 
Spain  was  the  extension  of  the  northern  limit  of  West  Florida 
as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo,  to  its  old  British  boundary,! 
leaving  the  whole  territory  north  of  that  latitude  wholly  to  the 
people  of  the  contemplated  republic.  As  a  further  inducement, 
the  king  had  authorized  the  promise  that  all  the  restrictions 
heretofore  imposed  upon  the  river  trade  should  be  removed, 
and  other  important  advantages  and  privileges  would  be  grant- 
ed, which  would  give  them  a  decided  advantage  over  the  At- 
lantic States.  Thus,  they  were  reminded  that,  as  an  independ- 
ent government,  in  alliance  with  Spain, "  they  would  find  them- 
selves in  a  situation  infinitely  more  advantageous  for  their  com- 
mercial relations  than  they  could  be,  were  the  treaty  of  Mad- 
rid carried  into  elFect."§ 

Such  were  a  few  of  the  specimens  of  Spanish  faith  and  Span- 
ish diplomacy  with  the  United  States  during  this  tedious  and 
vexed  negotiation,  which  began  soon  after  the  close  of  the  Rev- 

*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  150-152.  t  Idem,  p.  144,  145. 

X  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  144.    Also,  Butler's  Kentucky,  p.  S45-247. 
$  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky,  p.  S47,  first  edition. 


A.D.  1798.] 


VALLEY    OP   THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


535 


olutionary  war,  and  continued,  with  but  little  interruption,  un- 
til the  spring  of  1798. 

The  western  people,  even  those  who  had  favored  the  over- 
tures held  out  by  the  Spanish  emissaries,  had  become  satisfied 
with  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  by  which  they  had  acquired  all  they 
had  claimed  or  desired,  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi ; 
they  preferred  to  enjoy  these  advantages  under  their  own  free 
government,  rather  than,  by  receiving  them  in  a  separate  con- 
dition, become  the  vassals  of  Spain.  Satisfied  with  the  Fed- 
eral Union,  they  desired  no  other  alliance.* 

It  was  not  until  the  4th  of  September,  1797,  that  Powers 
finally  failed  in  his  negotiation  with  Benjamin  Sebastian  and 
others  of  Kentucky.  During  the  summer  of  1797,  he  had  pen- 
etrated through  Kentucky  on  the  line  of  the  northwestern  posts 
as  far  as  Detroit,  the  headquarters  of  General  Wilkinson,  then 
commander-in-chief  of  the  northwestern  army.  His  ostensible 
business,  on  this  occasion,  was  to  bear  to  General  Wilkinson  a 
remonstrance  against  pressing  the  delivery  of  the  forts  on  the 
Mississippi  until  it  should  be  clearly  ascertained  "  whether  they 
were  to  be  dismantled  before  delivery ;"  but  his  real  object  was 
to  press  General  Wilkinson  into  the  Spanish  conspiracy,  with 
the  whole  weight  of  his  power  and  authority  as  commander- 
in-chief  of  the  army,  in  sustaining  the  separation.! 

In  his  journey  to  Detroit,  Powers  passed  by  way  of  Fort 
Greenville,  and  reached  the  vicinity  of  Detroit  on  the  16th 
day  of  August ;  but,  being  informed  that  General  Wilkinson 
was  absent  at  Michillimackinac,  he  did  not  enter  the  fort.  A 
few  days  afterward  Wilkinson  returned,  and  having  heard  of 
Powers's  arrival,  caused  him  to  be  arrested  and  brought  to 
the  fort,  and  thus  secured  the  Baron  de  Carondelet's  dispatch- 
es ;  after  which  he  hurried  him  off,  under  an  escort  command- 
ed by  Captain  Shaumburg,  by  way  of  the  Wabash,  to  Fort 
Massac,  in  order  to  avoid  interception  by  the  Fedei'al  authori- 
ties.J 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Federal  government  had  been  appris- 
ed of  the  embassy  of  Powers,  and  instructions  had  been  issued 
to  the  governor  of  the  Northwestern  Territory  to  cause  him 
to  be  arrested  and  sent  a  prisoner  to  Philadelphia.^ 

*  See  Burnet's  Letters,  p.  67-69,  Cincinnati  edition  of  1839. 
t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  143.  t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  151. 

$  On  the  5th  of  June,  at  Natchez,  during  the  time  of  the  greatest  excitement,  it  was 
ascertained  that  the  Englishman  Powers,  a  subject  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  had  been 


536 


HISTORY    OP  THE 


[book  IV. 


The  temerity  of  this  last  intrigue,  put  in  operation  by  the 
Governor  of  Louisiana,  astonishes  every  reflecting  mind.  But 
General  Wilkinson  was  a  talented  and  ambitious  man  ;  he  had 
received  many  favors  from  the  Spanish  governors  nearly  ten 
years  before ;  he  had  received  exclusive  privileges  in  the  com- 
merce with  Louisiana ;  a  long  and  confidential  intercourse  had 
existed  between  him  and  Governor  Miro ;  he  was  known  to 
have  indulged  a  predilection  for  the  Spanish  authority,  and 
was  ambitious  of  power  and  distinction ;  he  was  now  at  the 
head  of  the  western  armies,  and,  with  the  power  and  influence 
of  his  station,.he  might  effectually  bring  about  a  separation  of 
the  West,  the  formation  of  a  new  republic,  of  which  he  him- 
self might  be  the  supreme  ruler,  and  conduct  the  alliance  with 
Spain.  Such  may  have  been  the  reasoning  of  Baron  de  Ca- 
rondelet  at  this  late  period. 

But  General  Wilkinson  had  already  proceeded  too  far  in  his 
treasonable  intrigues  and  correspondence  with  the  Spanish 
governor,  and  the  suspicions  of  his  own  government  rested 
upon  him.  The  brilliant  prospects,  and  the  bright  hopes  of  be- 
coming the  head  of  a  new  confederation,  had  vanished  from 
his  imagination,  and  he  was  now  anxious  to  retain  his  com- 
mand, and  with  it  his  standing  as  a  patriotic  citizen  of  the 
United  States.  Hence,  in  the  summer  of  1797,  he  had  given 
to  Mr.  Powers  a  cold  reception ;  he  had  informed  him  that  the 
time  for  a  separation  had  passed  by ;  that  now  the  project  of 
the  Baron  would  be  chimerical  in  the  extreme ;  that  the  west- 
ern people,  by  the  late  treaty,  had  obtained  all  they  had  de- 
sired, and  that  now  they  entertained  no  desire  for  an  alliance 
with  either  Spain  or  France ;  that  the  political  ferment  which 
existed  four  years  previously  had  entirely  subsided ;  and  that. 


secretly  dispatxhed  to  Kentucky  by  the  governor-general.  Cotonel  Ellicott  and  others 
were  active  in  their  efibrts  to  circumvent  his  movements,  by  dispatching  letters  to 
prominent  persons  in  Kentucky  and  the  Northwestern  Territoiy,  and  giving  them  no- 
tice of  his  character  and  designs.  Colonel  EUioott  also  wrote  to  the  executive  depart- 
ment of  the  Federal  government,  conveying  the  suspicions  which  were  entertained 
against  Powers,  and  the  object  of  his  mission.  Before  he  left  Kentucky  his  danger  be- 
came imminent,  and  with  difficulty  he  escaped  arrest  by  a  sudden  departure  in  the 
night.  A  plan  was  laid  to  honor  him  with  a  coat  of  "  tar  and  feathers"  by  the  patriotic 
people  of  Kentucky.  Early  in  September  he  set  out  from  Detroit,  and  reached  New 
Orleans  in  October  following.  After  his  lirrival  at  New  Orleans  he  reported  his  own 
views  and  those  of  Judge  Sebastian  as  decidedly  favorable  to  the  success  of  the  en- 
terprise of  separating  the  Western  States,  and  also  thb  opinion  of  General  Wilkinson, 
that  it  was  impracticable.  Compare  EUicott,  p.  98,  &c.  Also,  Burnet's  Letters,  ed. 
of  1839,  p.  68.    Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  151, 153. 


A.D.  1798.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


537 


so  far  from  desiring  an  alliance  with  Louisiana  under  the  Span- 
ish crown,  the  people  of  Kentucky,  prior  to  the  treaty  of  Mad- 
rid, had  proposed  to  invade  Louisiana  with  an  army  of  ten 
thousand  men,  to  be  put  in  motion  upon  the  first  open  rupture 
between  the  two  governments  ;  and  that  now  they  were  highly 
exasperated  at  the  spoliations  committed  upon  the  American 
commerce  by  French  privateers,  who  brought  their  prizes  into 
the  port  of  New  Orleans  for  condemnation  and  confiscation. 
He  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  governor-general  would 
therefore  consult  his  own  interest,  and  the  interest  of  his 
Catholic  majesty,  by  an  immediate  compliance  with  the  terms 
of  the  treaty.* 

General  Wilkinson  also  complained  that  his  connection  and 
his  correspondence  with  the  Spanish  governor  had  been  di- 
vulged ;  that  all  his  plans  had  been  defeated,  and  the  labor  of 
ten  years  had  been  lost ;  that  he  had  now  burned  all  his  corre- 
spondence and  destroyed  his  ciphers,  and  that  duty  and  honor 
forbid  a  continuance  of  the  intercourse.  Yet  he  still  indulged 
the  hope  of  being  able  to  manifest  his  confidence  in  the  Baron ; 
for  it  was  probable  that  he  would  receive  from  the  Federal 
government  the  appointment  of  governor  over  the  Natchez 
District  when  surrendered  agreeably  to  treaty,  when  he  should 
not  want  an  opportunity  of  promoting  his  political  projects.f 


*  Martin's  Loniaiana,  vol.  ii,  p.  151. 


t  Idem,  p.  isa. 


\ 

538                                             III8TORV   OP   THE                                 [nooK  IV.' 

CHAPTER  V. 

CL08E  OP    THE    SPANISH    DOMINION    IN    LOUISIANA,  AND    THE    FINAL 

TRANSPEIl  OF  THE  PROVINCE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. A.D.  1797 

TO   1801. 

Arifumenl. — Prosperity  of  Louisiana  unaffoctcd  by  Hostilities  in  Europe. — Gnyoso  sue- 
coeds  88  Governor-general  of  Louisiana  in  1797. — The  King's  Urdera  relntive  to  Land 
Qrants. — The  Intendant  alono  cmpoweretl  to  make  Grants. — French  I'rivateers.— 
Daniel  Clarke,  Jr.,  recognized  as  Consul. — Hnmiony  on  the  Spanish  and  American 
Borders. — Concordia. — Vidaliain  17y!).— Death  of  Gayoso  in  1709. — His  Successors. — 
Colonel  Ellicott's  Eulogy  of  Gayoso. — Population  of  Upper  Louisiana. — Its  Trade  and 
Commerce. — Harmony  with  the  western  People  again  disturbed  by  Morales. — Policy 
of  Spain  in  restricting  her  Grants  of  Land. — Jealous  of  Military  Adventurers. — Re- 
strictions enforced  by  Morales. — His  first  Interdict  of  Deposit  at  Now  Orleans. — 
Western  Indignation. — Capture  of  Now  Orleans  contemplated. — American  Troops 
in  the  Northwest. — Invasion  of  Louisiana  abandoned  by  John  Adams. — Filhiol  and 
Fejeiro  at  Fort  Miro,  on  tho  Washita. — Right  of  Deposit  restored  in  1801. — Again 
suspended  in  1^03. — Restored  in  1803. — Approaching  Change  of  Dominion  in  Lou- 
isiana.— The  Firat  Consul  of  the  French  Republic  acquires  the  Province  uf  Louisiana. 
— The  French  Occupation  deferred  one  Year  by  European  Wars. — Napoleon  de- 
termines to  sell  the  Province  to  tho  United  States. — Negotiation  for  Sale  commenced. 
— Mr.  Jetfersou's  Instructions. — Treaty  of  Cession  signed  April  30th,  1803. — Amount 
of  Purclmso-moucy. — Terms  of  Payment. — Preparations  for  French  Occupation. — The 
Form  of  Government  prepared  by  French  Prefect. — Arrival  of  Laussat,  the  Colonial 
Prefect. — His  Proclamation. — Response  of  the  People. — Proclamation  of  Governor 
Salccdo. — Rumor  of  Cession  to  United  States. — Laussat  appointed  Commissioner  of 
the  French  Republic.— Conditions  of  tho  Treaty  of  April  30th,  1803.— Preparations 
for  Occupation  by  the  United  States. — Protest  of  the  Spanish  King. — Congress  rat- 
ifies the  Treaty. — Commissioners  of  tho  United  States.— Preparations  of  French  Com- 
missioner.— Ceremony  of  Spanish  Delivery. — Proclamation  of  the  French  Prefect. — 
Spanish  Rule  abolished  and  French  Government  instituted. — Volunteer  Battalion  for 
the  Preservation  of  Order. — Preparations  for  Delivery  to  the  United  States. — Govern- 
or Claiborne  and  General  Wilkinson  arrive  in  New  Orleans. — Ceremony  of  French  De- 
livery to  the  United  States,  December  'JOtli,  1803. — Remote  Posts  formally  delivered 
subsequently  to  Agents  of  tho  French  Prefect. — Major  Stoddart  takes  Possession  of 
Upper  Louisiana,  March  9th,  1804. — Condition  and  Boundaries  of  Louisiana. — Popu- 
lation of  the  Province. —  Commerce. — Agricultural  Products. — Trade  and  Manufac- 
tures of  New  Orleans. 

[A.D.  1797.]  Although  Spain  had  become  deeply  involved 
in  the  continental  wars  of  Europe,  the  contest  was  confined 
chiefly  to  interior  and  maritime  parts  of  that  continent  and  the 
adjacent  coasts  of  Africa,  Syria,  and  the  Grecian  Isles  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea.*  Louisiana  continued  to  enjoy  peace  and 
prosperity,  interrupted  only  by  the  jealous  fears  excited  at  the 
rapid  extension  of  the  American  settlements  upon  the  great 
eastern  tributaries  of  the  Mississippi. 

*  Martin,  vol  ii.,  p.  139. 


A.D.  1708.] 


VALLEY   OF    THE    MISSIHSIITL 


53U 


Nor  was  this  jealous  apprehension  in  any  wise  <liminishe(l 
by  the  compulsory  relinquishment  of  the  Natchez  District,  which 
was  now  open  to  the  unrestrained  tide  of  emigration  from  iho 
whole  West. 

The  new  governor-general,  Gayoso  de  Lemos,  entered  upon 
the  duties  of  his  office  on  the  first  of  August,  and  devoted  him- 
self .assiduously  to  the  promotion  of  good  government  and  tran- 
quillity within  the  linuts  of  his  jurisdiction.  Among  the  first 
objects  requiring  his  attention  was  the  restoration  of  harmony 
and  good  feeling  between  the  American  and  Spanish  authori- 
ties preparatory  to  the  establishinent  of  the  line  of  demarka- 
tion. 

[A.D.  1798.]  It  was  not  until  January  folio  vving  that  he  is- 
sued his  hando  de  huen  gobierno.  It  contained  no  new  regula- 
tions of  importance  except  his  determination  to  enforce  a  strict 
observance  of  the  commands  of  the  king  respecting  the  future 
appropriation  of  lands  to  the  use  of  Spanish  subjects  exclusively, 
and  the  prohibition  of  foreign  immigration  to  the  province. 

Next  day  he  issued  his  instructions  to  the  diflerent  com- 
mandants, comprised  in  seventeen  articles,  defining  all  the  pro- 
visions and  regulations  to  be  observed  in  future  grants.*  Here- 
tofore, the  authority  for  granting  lands  to  settlers  and  emi- 
grants had,  by  the  king's  order,  dated  August,  1770,  been  vested 
in  the  civil  and  military  commandants,  with  the  concurrent  ap- 
probation of  the  governor-general.  But  this  authority  was  now 
to  be  revoked,  and  confided  exclusively  to  the  intendant.  Thus 
an  entire  change  in  the  general  policy  of  the  land  system  was 
introduced. 

About  this  time,  the  first  regular  commercial  agent  or  Amer- 
ican consul  was  recognized  in  the  city  of  New  Orleans. 

"  The  French  privateers  had  now  become  very  troublesome 
to  the  trade  of  the  United  States  in  the  West  Indies  and  about 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  A  number  of  our  captured  vessels  were 
taken  into  the  port  of  New  Orleans,  condemned  and  confis- 
cated, with  their  cargoes,  at  a  trifling  price,  our  seamen  treated 
in  a  most  shameful  manner,  and  our  trade  otherwise  brought 
into  great  jeopardy."! 

"  This  subject  became  a  matter  of  serious  consideration,  and 
the  United  States  having  neither  consul  nor  vice-consul  at  that 


*  See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  153-155,  where  these  regalationa  are  given  in  full. 
t  Bllicotf  ■  Journal,  p.  173. 


540 


HISTORY   OP  THE 


[book  IV. 


port,"  Colonel  Ellicott,  the  American  commissioner,  interested 
himself  with  the  authorities  of  Louisiana  in  procuring  from 
them  the  privilege  of  recognizing  Daniel  Clarke,  Jr.,  a  respect- 
able merchant  of  that  place,  as  consul  for  the  United  States, 
until  the  president  should  make  a  regular  appointment.  Where- 
upon, by  the  order  of  Governor  Gayoso,  Daniel  Clarke  was  re- 
ceived as  "  Consul  for  the  United  States,"  and  regarded  as 
such  by  the  merchants  and  officers  of  his  Catholic  majesty.* 

"  The  firm  and  manly  conduct  of  Mr.  Clarke  in  a  short  time 
put  a  new  face  upon  our  commerce  in  that  quarter,  and  ob- 
tained from  the  Spanish  authorities  some  privileges  not  before 
enjoyed."  In  effecting  this  desirable  object.  Colonel  Ellicott 
and  Mr.  Clarke  had  opened  a  voluminous  correspondence  with 
Governor  Gayoso  upon  the  various  subjects  which  invited  dis- 
cussion, in  all  of  which  the  governor  evinced  a  sincere  desire 
to  promote  the  commerce  of  the  city. 

The  agency  of  Mr.  Clarke  was  so  acceptable  that  the  thanks 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States  was  tendered  him  through 
Colonel  Ellicott,  and  he  was  requested  to  continue  his  good 
offices  in  favor  of  the  American  citizens  until  a  regular  consul 
and  vice-consul  should  be  duly  appointed.  Mr.  Clarke  accord- 
ingly continued  to  exercise  the  duties  of  the  office  until  the 
regular  appointment  of  Evan  Jones  consul,  and  Mr.  Huling 
vice-consul  the  spring  following.  Upon  the  accession  of  Mr. 
Jefferson  to  the  presidency,  he  appointed  Daniel  Clarke  consul, 
highly  approving  his  former  services  in  that  capacity.f 

The  line  of  demarkation  having  been  established  near  the 
Mississippi,  such  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Natchez  District  as 
were  so  inclined  quietly  retired  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Spanish  authorities.  To  insure  a  proper  observance  of  a 
friendly  neutrality,  General  Wilkinson,  early  in  the  autumn, 
established  a  military  post  on  the  east  bank  of  the  river,  at 
Loftus's  Heights,  a  few  miles  above  the  line  of  demarkation, 
subsequently  known  as  Fort  Adams.  Other  posts,  with  a  small 
garrison  in  each,  were  distributed  upon  the  line  eastward.  The 
headquarters  of  the  American  commander  were  at  Natchez ; 
and  a  new  Spanish  post  was  erected  on  the  west  bank  of  the 
river,  opposite  Fort  Panmure.  A  convention  was  entered  into 
between  the  American  commander,  General  Wilkinson,  and  the 
Governor-general  of  Louisiana,  for  the  mutual  surrender  of 

*  See  Ellicotf  B  Joomal,  p.  174.  t  Idem.    Also,  Martin,  vd.  ii.,  p.  158. 


A.D.  1799.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


541 


at 


deserters.  Also,  a  similar  convention  was  concluded  between 
the  Governor  of  the  Mississippi  Territory,  at  Natchez,  and  Don 
Jose  Vidal,  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  for  the  mutual  sur- 
render of  fugitive  slaves.  A  spirit  of  mutual  good  feeling  and 
amicable  intercourse  seemed  to  prevail  between  the  civil  and 
military  authorities  of  both  governments,  which  was  suitably 
commemorated  by  the  Spanish  commandant  opposite  Fort  Pan- 
mure  in  designating  his  post  as  "  Fort  Concord."  The  name 
has  since  been  perpetuated  in  the  rich  parish  of  Concordia, 
while  its  excellent  commandant  is  commemorated  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Vidalia,  which  occupies  the  site  of  the  post. 

During  this  state  of  things,  the  intercourse  of  American  citi- 
zens in  Louisiana  was  free  and  amicable,  and  the  increase  of 
western  emigration  and  trade  greatly  augmented  the  commer- 
cial importance  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  in  Louisiana  until  the  close  of 
the  year  1798,  after  which  an  important  change  ensued.  Con- 
sequent upon  the  orders  from  the  king  revoking  the  authority 
of  commandants  to  grant  lands,  the  royal  schedule  was  re- 
ceived, bearing  date  21st  of  October,  1798,  requiring  the  most 
rigid  observance  of  all  restrictions  heretofore  decreed.  This 
was  only  a  prelude  to  other  movements  more  materially  af- 
fecting the  interests  of  the  western  people,  and  the  ultimate 
object  of  which  was  to  prevent  the  emigration  of  American 
citizens  to  the  Spanish  dominions. 

[A.D.  1799.]  The  Spanish  authorities  were  extremely  jeal- 
ous of  the  approach  of  the  American  population,  and  many 
new  restrictions  were  imposed  upon  those  who  desired  to  es- 
tablish themselves  within  the  Spanish  jurisdiction.  All  former 
privileges  permitted  to  citizens  of  the  United  Stati  ,^  r- ere  dis- 
continued, and  many  of  the  restrictions  relative  to  g-ants  of 
land  were  deemed  peculiarly  oppressive,  and  framed  to  oper- 
ate specially  upon  the  western  people. 

Under  the  new  system  of  distributing  the  royal  domain,  the 
regulations  provided  that  no  grant  of  land  should  be  made  to 
a  trader,  or  any  one  who  was  not  engaged  in  some  regular 
employment,  or  in  some  agricultural  or  mechanical  business. 
All  persons  without  this  qualification  were  excluded  from  all 
residence  in  Louisiana,  which  embraced  also  the  settlements 
on  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi,  from  the  mouth  of  the  Ar- 
kansas to  that  of  the  Missouri.    No  minister  of  the  Gospel, 


542 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV, 


nor  preacher  of  any  Protestant  denomination  whatever,  was 
permitted  to  settle  within  the  bounds  of  the  province.  The 
Catholic  religion  was  supported  by  law,  and,  being  a  part 
of  the  regal  government,  was  tolerated  to  the  exclusion  of  all 
others. 

Every  immigrant  for  settlement  was  required,  immediately 
after  his  arrival,  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  Spanish 
crown,  and  to  locate  himself  near  some  old  Spanish  settlement, 
under  the  eye  of  a  Spanish  commandant.  No  foreigner  should 
receive  a  grant  of  land  unless  he  possessed  money,  slaves,  or 
valuable  property,  until  he  had  been  in  the  country  four  years, 
engaged  in  some  useful  and  honest  employment. 

The  prejudices  of  the  Spanish  authorities  ran  high  against 
Americans  of  a  certain  class.  Military  adventurers  who  had 
served  in  the  war  of  'the  Revolution,  or  in  the  western  cam- 
paigns against  the  Indians,  were  highly  obnoxious  to  the  Span- 
ish authorities.  Hundreds  of  these,  both  soldiers  and  officers, 
had  spread  over  the  new  settlements  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio, 
and  too  often  made  their  appearance  in  New  Orleans  and  oth- 
er portions  of  Louisiana.  Those  were  particularly  obnoxious 
as  immigrants  whose  profession  or  avocation  gave  them  influ- 
ence over  their  fellow-men ;  hence  lawyers  and  ministers  of 
the  Gospel  were  excluded.  Those  who  were  closely  employ- 
ed in  laborious  trades,  or  who  had  large  families  to  support, 
or  who  had  large  possessions,  were  not  likely  to  be  engaged 
in  any  plans  for  subverting  the  king's  authority ;  but  military 
officers,  disbanded  soldiers,  politicians,  and  men  of  that  cast, 
could  not  be  too  carefully  excluded  from  the  province.  Such 
were  the  sagacious  inferences  which  prompted  the  Spanish 
policy  after  the  final  surrender  of  the  Natchez  District. 

In  carrying  out  the  requisitions  of  the  royal  schedule  rela- 
tive to  appropriations  of  land,  persons  who  had  received  grants 
previously  to  the  new  regulations  were  prohibited  from  selling 
or  in  any  wise  transferring  their  claims  until  they  had  resided 
thereon  three  years ;  and  no  sale  should  be  valid  without  the 
consent  and  approbation  of  the  intendant.  In  no  case  should 
the  quantity  of  land  to  anyone  family  exceed  eight  hundred 
arpens  ;  and  petitions  for  grants  must  be  written  in  the  Spanish 
language.  No  title  was  to  be  considered  complete,  after  the 
order  of  survey  and  occupancy,  until,  by  a  formal  application, 
the  claimant  should  receive  a  regular  title,  or  final  confirma- 


A.D.  1709.] 


VAU.BY    OF    THE    MISSIHtillTI. 


543 


tion  of  the  claim,  known  to  the  Spaniards  as  titulo  informo. 
These  and  other  regulations  tor  enforcing  the  views  of  the 
king  had  not  been  published  until  they  were  made  known  by  the 
proclamation  of  the  intendant,  Don  Morales,  issued  on  the  17th 
day  of  July,  1790.  They  were  comprised  in  thirty-eight  ar- 
ticles.* 

But  the  most  ominous  act  of  the  intendant  for  the  peace  and 
security  of  Louisiana  was  an  ill-advised  and  arbitrary  inter- 
dict of  the  right  of  deposit  at  New  Orleans,  contrary  to  the 
stipulations  of  the  treaty  of  Madrid.  The  eflect  on  the  west- 
ern people  of  the  United  States  was  embarrassing  in  the  ex- 
treme ;  and  being  a  direct  violation  of  their  rights,  as  secured 
by  treaty,  it  excited  the  high^jst  degree  of  indignation  through- 
out the  whole  western  country,  the  consequences  of  which 
might  have  been  the  military  invasion  of  Louisiana  by  the  Fed- 
eral troops,  had  not  fate  already  decreed  another  mode  by 
which  Louisiana  should  submit  to  the  Federal  power. 

The  treaty  of  Madrid  secured  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States  the  right  of  deposit  in  New  Orleans  for  their  commodi- 
ties for  three  years  from  the  ratification ;  and  the  King  of  Spain 
therein  obligated  himself,  at  the  expiration  of  three  years,  to 
extend  the  time,  or  to  designate  some  other  suitable  point  with- 
in the  Island  of  New  Orleans,  as  a  place  of  deposit. f 

Such  were  the  excitement  and  indignation  of  the  western 
people,  and  specially  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  that  it  was 
with  difficulty  the  Federal  authorities  could  restrain  them  from 
an  unlawful  expedition  against  Louisiana  for  the  capture  of 
New  Orleans.  President  Adams,  swayed  by  the  popular  will 
in  the  West,  had  fully  determined  to  take  such  measures  as 
would  coerce  the  Spanish  authorities  to  open  a  depot  for  the 
American  trade. 

With  an  eye  to  this  object,  President  Adams  caused  three 
regiments  of  the  regular  army  to  be  concentrated  upon  the 
Lower  Ohio,  with  orders  to  be  held  in  readiness  for  any  emer- 
gency. Congress  soon  afterward,  for  the  ostensible  purpose 
of  avenging  the  French  spoliations  upon  the  American  com- 
merce, authorized  the  army  to  be  increased  by  the  enlistment 
of  twelve  regiments,  to  serve  "  during  the  continuance  of  dif- 
ficulties with  the  French  Republic."    The  troops  concentrated 

*  See  Martin's  Loaisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  159-170,  where  these  regulations  may  be  seen 
in  detail.  t  Idem,  p.  158. 


644 


IIIBTORY    OF   TUB 


[UOOK   IV. 


near  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  were  required  to  keep  their  boats 
in  repair,  ready  for  any  service  required  of  them.*  At  the 
same  time,  the  commander-in-chief.  General  Wilkinson,  was 
summoned  to  the  seat  of  the  Federal  government,  in  order  to 
hold  an  interview  with  the  cabinet,  with  the  design  of  arrang- 
ing the  plan  of  operations  for  a  campaign  against  Louisiana. 
General  Washington  had  been  appointed  provisional  command- 
er-in-chief of  the  new  establishment,  and  General  Knox,  the 
former  secretary  of  war,  was  appointed  a  major-general,  and 
Generals  Hamilton  and  Pinckney  were  appointed  lieutenant- 
generals  under  General  Washington.f  Every  thing  was  urged 
with  great  energy  during  much  excitement  in  the  West,  and 
the  whole  object  was  first  to  redress  the  wrongs  upon  Ameri- 
can rights  and  commerce  on  the  Mississippi,  which  were  more 
pressing  than  those  from  France  on  the  ocean. 

The  success  of  the  contemplated  enterprise  required  the  ut- 
most secrecy,  lest,  by  rousing  the  suspicions  of  Spain,  Louisi- 
ana should  be  placed  in  a  state  of  complete  defense.;]; 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  on  the  Ohio  during  the  year 
1799,  and  such  was  the  danger  which  secretly  menaced  Lou- 
isiana and  the  city  of  New  Orleans.  Political  changes,  and 
the  strong  indications  of  popular  preference  for  Mr.  Jefferson, 
induced  Mr.  Adams  to  abandon  the  enterprise,  and  leave  the 
whole  to  the  direction  of  his  successor.  At  his  recommenda- 
tion, Congress  directed  the  abandonment  of  the  expedition,  and 
the  recruits  were  disbanded. 

In  the  mean  time,  Louisiana  was  scarcely  conscious  of  the 
danger  which  menaced  her.  The  amiable  Gayoso  had  died  on 
the  18th  of  July,  and  was  succeeded  by  Don  Maria  Vidal  as 
civil  governor,  the  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo  as  commandant- 
general,  and  Don  Ramon  de  Lopez  y'  Angullo,  a  knight  of 
the  order  of  Charles  III.,  as  intendant  of  the  provinces.^ 

The  death  of  Governor  Gayoso  was  deemed  a  great  loss  to 
the  interests  of  the  western  people  of  the  United  States.  Many 
of  them  who  were  engaged  in  the  trade  of  the  Mississippi  had 
received  from  him  particular  attention,  frequently  partaking  of 
that  hospitality  for  which  he  was  so  remarkable.  "  As  the  gov- 
ernor of  an  arbitrary  monarch,  he  was  certainly  entitled  to  great 
merit.    It  appeared,  in  an  eminent  degree,  to  be  his  pride  to  ren- 


*  Stoddart's  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  100, 101. 

t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  173.  t  Idem,  p.  174.  $  Idem,  p.  172. 


A.D.   1700.] 


VALLEY   or   THE   MISSIflSIPri. 


S45 


der  the  situation  of  those  over  whom  he  was  appointed  to  preside 
as  easy  and  comfortable  as  possible ;  and  in  a  particuhir  manner 
he  directed  his  attention  to  the  improvement  of  the  country  by 
opening  roads,  which  he  considered  the  arteries  of  commerce. 
He  was  educated  in  Great  Britain,  and  retained  to  a  considerable 
degree,  until  his  death,  the  manners  and  customs  of  that  nation, 
especially  in  his  style  of  living.  In  his  conversation  he  was  easy 
and  affable,  and  his  politeness  was  of  that  superior  cast  which 
showed  it  to  be  the  effect  of  early  habit,  rather  than  an  accom- 
plishment merely  intended  to  render  him  agreeable.  His  pas- 
sions were  naturally  so  strong,  and  his  temper  so  remarkably 
quick,  that  they  sometimes  hurried  him  into  difficulties  from 
which  he  was  not  easily  extricated.  It  was  frequently  remark- 
ed of  him,  as  a  singularity,  that  he  was  neither  concerned  in 
traffick,  nor  in  the  habit  of  taking  douceurs,  which  was  too  fre- 
quently the  case  with  other  officers  of  his  Catholic  majesty  in 
Louisiana.  He  was  fond  of  show  and  parade,  in  which  he  in- 
dulged to  the  great  injury  of  his  fortune,  and  not  a  little  to  his 
reputation  as  A  good  paymaster.  He  was  a  tender  husband, 
an  affectionate  parent,  and  a  good  master."  Such  is  the 
character  given  him  by  Colonel  Ellicott,  who  ascribes  all 
his  difficulties  with  him  to  his  instructions  from  his  superiors, 
and  who  declares  him  to  have  been  an  accomplished  gen- 
tleman.* 

Meantime  difficulties  with  the  United  States  fortunately  were 
averted  by  the  timely  disavowal  of  the  intendant's  interdict  by 
his  Catholic  majesty,  and  the  right  of  deposit  was  promptly  re- 
stored by  his  successor,  Don  Ramon  de  Lopez,  until  otherwise 
ordered  by  the  king.f 

The  population  of  Louisiana  continued  to  increase ;  tliat  por- 
tion known  as  Upper  Louisiana  had  augmented  its  population 
in  a  ratio  far  exceeding  the  remainder  of  the  province.  The 
settlements  upon  the  Upper  Mississippi,  including  the  post  at 
New  Madrid,  were  now  attached  to  the  government  of  Upper 
Louisiana.  The  census  of  this  portion  of  the  province,  taken  by 
order  of  the  lieutenant-governor  and  commandant-general  of 
Upper  Louisiana,  Don  Carlos  Dehault  Delassus,  at  the  close  of 
the  year  1799,  presents  the  entire  population  at  more  than  six 
thousand  souls,  including  eight  hundred  and  eighty  slaves  and 

*  EUicotf  8  Jonraal,  p.  S15,  216. 

t  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  176.    Also,  Marbois's  Louisiana,  p.  219. 

Vol.  I.— M  m 


546 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


one  hundred  and  ninety-seven  free  persons  of  color.*  During 
this  year,  there  were  in  Upper  Louisiana  thirty-four  marriages, 
one  hundred  and  ninety  one  births,  and  fifty-two  deaths. 

The  commerce  of  Upper  Louisiana  had  also  increased  in  a 
similar  ratio,  and  a  brisk  trade  had  been  established  between 
St.  Louis  and  New  Orleans,  as  well  as  with  the  American  set- 
tlements on  the  Ohio,  Cumberland,  and  Tennessee  Rivers.  The 
annual  crops  yielded  about  eighty-eight  thousand  minots  of 
wheat,  eighty-four  thousand  minots  of  Indian  corn,  and  twenty- 
eight  thousand  six  hundred  and  twenty-seven  pounds  of  tobac- 
co. About  seventeen  hundred  quintals  of  lead  were  produced 
from  the  mines,  and  about  one  thousand  barrels  of  salt  were 
made  from  the  salines.  The  fur-trade  yielded  an  annual  value 
of  about  seventy  thousand  dollars.f  The  greater  portion  of 
the  lead  expo:  ted  was  for  the  Ohio  settlements,  including  those 
on  the  Cumberland  and  Tennessee  Rivers. 

[A.D.  1800.]  The  right  of  deposit  having  been  restored  by 
the  new  intendant,  trade  and  free  intercourse  had  again  taken 
place,  and  general  harmony  prevailed  between  the  western 
people  and  the  Spanish  settlements  on  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
as  well  as  in  the  rich  and  productive  regions  of  the  Delta.  The 
bitter  animosities  and  the  spirit  of  revenge  which  had  filled  the 
western  people,  in  consequence  of  former  duties  and  restric- 
tions, as  well  as  the  late  interdict,  had  now  subsided  into  a  laud- 
able desire  for  the  peaceable  acquisition  of  property,  through 
the  channels  of  lawful  trade  and  enterprise.  This  state  of  mu- 
tual prosperity  and  friendly  intercourse  between  the  people  of 
the  tJnited  States  and  those  of  Louisiana  continued,  with  but 
little  interruption,  for  nearly  two  years,  until  the  second  inter- 
dict in  the  autumn  of  1802. 

*  This  population  was  distributed  through  the  settlements  as  follows : 

1.  8t.  Louis 935  souls. 

2.  Carondelet 184     " 

3.  St.  Charles 875    " 

4.  St.  Fernando S76     " 

5.  Marias  des  Liards  .    .    .  376    " 

6.  Moramee 115    " 

7.  St.  Andrew 393     " 

.-^ee  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  172. 

t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  173.  The  principal  items  in  the  fur-trade  were  as  follows,  with 
their  relative  value,  viz. : 

1754  bundles  deer-skins,  at  840  .    .  ! $70,160 

e      "        bear-skins,  at      32 256 

18     "       buffalo  robes,  at  30 540 

Total,        $70,956 


8.  St.  Genevieve      .    . 

.     .    949  souls. 

9.  New  Bourbon      .    . 

.    .    560     " 

10.  Cape  Girardeau  .    . 

.    .    521     " 

11.  New  Madrid  .    .    . 

.     .     782     " 

12.  Little  Prairie      .    . 

.     .       49     " 

Total,       6,028 


A.D.  1802.] 


VALLEY    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


547 


During  this  year,  among  the  changes  o*"  officers  in  Louisiana, 
may  be  noted  that  of  comnandant  at  the  post  of  Miro,  on  the 
Washita.  John  Filhiol,  who  had  held  the  command  since  1783, 
resigned  his  office,  and  was  succeeded  by  Don  Vincente  Fer- 
nandez Fejeiro,  a  man  of  intriguing  and  avaricious  disposition. 
During  the  time  he  held  this  post,  subsequently,  and  until  the 
close  of  the  Spanish  dominion,  he  lost  no  opportunity  of  enrich- 
ing himself  and  his  friends  by  a  fraudulent  abuse  of  his  official 
station,  in  fabricating  grants  of  land  and  the  final  titles  to  the 
same.*  From  such  causes  large  bodies  of  land  for  more  than 
forty  years  have  been  withheld  from  sale  and  settlement,  to  the 
great  detriment  of  the  state,  if  not  a  fraud  upon  the  Federal 
government. 

[A.D.  1801.]  About  the  middle  of  June,  1801,  the  govern- 
ment of  Louisiana  was  committed  to  other  hands  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  the  king.  The  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo  returned  to 
Havana,  and  was  succeeded  by  Don  Juan  Manuel  de  Salcedo, 
a  brigadier-general  in  the  armies  of  Spain,  as  Governor  of  Lou- 
isiana. Ramon  de  Lopez,  the  intendant,  also  returned  to  Ha- 
vana, leaving  the  duties  of  his  office  to  be  discharged  by  Mo- 
rales, the  contador.f  ' 

[A.D.  1802.]  It  did  not  require  the  spirit  of  prophecy  to 
predict  the  speedy  termination  of  Spanish  power  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi. The  rapid  extension  of  the  American  settlements,  the 
increasing  trade  from  the  Western  States,  and  the  restless  char- 
acter of  the  people  were  such,  that  the  king  could  not  fail  to 
perceive  that,  unless  the  flood  of  immigration  could  be  arrested, 
Louisiana  would  ultimately  be  inundated  and  lost.  To  pre- 
vent such  a  I'e^ult,  he  required  of  the  provincial  authorities  a 
rigid  enforcement  of  former  regulations  relative  to  land-grants, 
from  which  he  required  every  American  citizen  to  be  utterly 
excluded.  To  enforce  this  principle,  he  signified  his  displeas- 
ure that  the  Baron  de  Bastrop  had  relinquished  a  moiety  of  his 
interest  in  the  grant  east  of  the  Washita,  by  associating  him- 
self in  the  claim  with  Morehouse,  an  American  citizen,  which 
was  a  virtual  violation  of  one  of  the  conditions  in  the  grant, 
which  vitiated  the  grant  from  its  inception. 

On  the  18th  of  July,  1802,  another  schedule  of  the  king  com- 

'  See  Report  of  Case  No.  99,  District  Court  of  Louisiana,  carried  to  United  States 
Supreme  Court,  "United  States,  plaintiffs  in  error,  vs.  Richard  King  and  Daniel  Coxe." 
])as8in]. 

t  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  178. 


548 


HISTORY    OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


prised  a  positive  prohibition  against  any  grant  of  land,  under 
any  circumstances,  to  any  citizen  of  the  United  States.* 

In  the  mean  time,  rumors  had  reached  Louisiana  that  the 
province  had  been  ceded  to  France,  and  that  the  dominion  of 
Spain  was  soon  to  give  place  to  that  of  France. 

Morales  was  again  intendant,  and  suspecting  the  approach- 
ing termination  of  the  Spanish  authority  on  the  Mississippi,  re- 
solved once  more  to  evince  his  inveterate  repugnance  to  the 
American  people  by  again  issuing  his  interdict  suspending  the 
light  of  deposit  at  New  Orleans.  His  proclamation  to  this  ef- 
fect was  dated  October  16th,  1802,t  and  published  in  the  city. 

This  act  of  arbitrary  power  again  roused  the  indignation  of 
the  western  people,  and  again  suspended  the  commerce  with 
New  Orleans.  The  embarrassments  and  losses  of  those  en- 
gaged in  the  river  trade  were  extensive,  and  spread  consterna- 
tion through  the  Western  States.  The  restrained  indignation 
of  the  people  vented  itself  in  appeals,  petitions,  and  even  curses, 
upon  the  Federal  government,  for  the  protracted  embarrass- 
ments of  the  West.  It  was  a  subject  in  which  the  whole  United 
States  now  began  to  take  a  deep  interest,  and  Congress  was 
prepared  to  sustain  the  wishes  of  the  people  and  vindicate  their 
rights. 

The  subject  was  early  brought  before  that  body,  and  on  the 
7th  of  January,  1803,  the  House  of  Representatives,  with  great 
unanimity,  passed  the  following  resolution,  viz. : 

"  Resolved,  that  this  House  receive  with  great  sensibility  the 
information  of  a  disposition  in  certain  officers  of  the  Spanish 
government  at  New  Orleans  to  obstruct  the  navigation  of  the 
Mississippi  River,  as  secured  to  the  United  States  by  the  most 
solemn  stipulations." 

The  resolution  proceeds  to  declare  the  firm  determination 
of  Congress  to  sustain  the  executive  of  the  United  States  in 
such  measures  as  he  shall  adopt  for  asserting  the  rights,  and 
vindicating  the  injuries  of  the  American  citizens ;  at  the  same 
time  declaring  their  unalterable  determination  to  maintain  the 
boundaries,  and  the  rights  of  navigation  and  commerce  through 
the  River  Mississippi,  as  established  by  existing  treaties. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  suspension  of  the  western  trade 
began  to  embarrass  the  city  of  New  Orleans  itself,  as  well  as 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  180. 

t  See  Americau  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.,  p.  483,  Boston  edition. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


549 


its  dependences  in  remote  parts  of  the  province.  The  sudden 
diminution  of  the  supplies  of  flour,  and  other  western  pro- 
ductions necessary  for  the  daily  sustenance  of  the  population, 
had  produced  great  scarcity  and  exorbitant  prices,  almost  ap- 
proaching famine.  To  counteract  the  effect  of  his  own  indis- 
cretion, Morales  was  induced,  on  the  5th  of  February,  to  issue 
his  proclamation  granting  to  the  western  people  the  privilege 
of  importing  flour  and  provisions  into  Louisiana,  subject  to  a 
duty  of  only  six  per  cent,  ad  valorem,  and  exportable  only  in 
Spanish  bottoms.  But  the  Americans  were  not  solicitous  to 
embrace  such  advantages.  i    . 

This  interdict  of  Morales,  near  the  close  of  the  year  1802, 
was  among  the  last  acts  of  arbitrary  power  exercised  by  the 
Spanish  authorities  against  the  American  people  and  the  west- 
ern commerce.  This  interdict,  also,  was  disapproved  by  the 
king,  and  by  his  command  the  right  of  deposit  was  restored 
March  3d,  1803.* 

[A.D.  1803.]  But  the  power  and  dominion  of  Spain  were 
about  to  cease  upon  the  Mississippi.  The  French  nation  had 
never  approved  the  transfer  to  Spain  in  1762.  The  loss  of 
Louisiana  had  been  viewed  as  the  greatest  calamity  to  the 
French  nation,  the  result  of  an  ignominious  war,  and  a  dis- 
honorable peace  under  a  weak  and  corrupt  government.  Since 
the  downfall  of  the  Bourbon  dynasty,  the  sympathies  of  Repub- 
lican France  had  never  lost  sight  of  their  estranged  country- 
men, subject,  as  they  conceived,  to  foreign  bondage  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi. The  exertions  of  the  French  minister  and  his  agents, 
in  the  years  1793  and  1794,  for  their  disenthrallment,  had 
been  defeated  only  by  the  vigilance  of  the  Baron  de  Carondelet, 
and  the  active  co-operation  of  the  authorities  of  the  United 
States.  Now  the  colossal  power  of  France,  under  the  guiding 
genius  of  Napoleon,  had  made  the  crowned  heads  of  Europe 
tremble,  and  his  edicts  were  supreme  law  to  Southern  Europe. 
Spain  became  involved  in  the  wars  in  Europe,  and  her  mon- 
arch had  been  compelled  to  yield  to  the  dictation  of  Napoleon, 
who  had  resolved  to  restore  to  the  French  empire  the  ancient 
province  of  Louisiana,  and  thus  to  extend  the  dominion  of 
France  again  upon  the  Mississippi. 

By  the  third  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ildefonso,  concluded  on 
the  first  of  October,  1800,  between  the  King  of  Spain  and  the 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  181.    Also,  Marbois'a  Louiaiaua,  p.  219,  280,  and  245. 


550 


HISTORY   OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


First  Consul  of  the  French  Republic,  and  which  was  subse- 
quently confirmed  and  ratified  by  treaty  at  Madrid  on  the  21st 
of  March,  1801,  the  King  of  Spain  had  ceded,  and  had  obligated 
himself  to  deliver  to  the  first  consul,  within  six  months  after  the 
full  and  entire  execution  of  certain  stipulations  therein  specified 
in  relation  to  the  Duke  of  Parma,  the  colony  and  province  of 
Louisiana,  with  the  same  extent  which  it  had  in  the  former  pos- 
session  of  France,  and  which  it  then  had  in  the  possession  of 
Spain  after  the  fulfillment  of  all  existing  treaties  by  them.* 
Napoleon  had  complied  with  his  obligations,  and  waited  only 
a  favorable  opportunity  to  take  possession  of  the  great  prov- 
ince on  the  Mississippi.  Elated  by  the  acquisition  of  a  country 
so  extensive  and  valuable,  and  which  was  to  reinstate  France 
in  the  best  portion  of  her  American  possessions,  he  had  made 
great  preparations  formally  to  extend  over  it  the  dominion  of 
France  in  a  manner  commensurate  with  the  power  of  the  Re- 
public. A  large  fleet  had  been  assembled  in  the  ports  of  Hol- 
land, and  a  land  force  of  twenty-five  thousand  men  had  been 
advanced  to  the  nortli  of  France,  ready  to  sail  for  the  Missis- 
sippi. But  various  embarrassments  delayed  the  contemplated 
departure  of  the  fleet  and  troops.  The  English,  suspecting  the 
destination  of  the  armament,  or  fearing  an  invasion  of  their  own 
coast,  had  concentrated  a  powerful  fleet  in  the  British  Channel, 
for  the  purpose  of  observing  the  movements,  and  to  prevent 
the  sailing  of  the  French  armament,  or  to  capture  it  whenever 
it  should  enter  upon  its  voyage.  Thus  nearly  twelve  months 
had  passed  in  delays  and  embarrassments,  while  Louisiana  con- 
tinued in  the  possession  of  Spain. 

At  length  Napoleon,  hard  pressed  by  continual  wars  in  Eu- 
rope, intercepted  by  the  English  fleets  in  the  British  Channel, 
cut  off"  from  regular  intercourse  with  remote  provinces  and  de- 
pendences, determined  to  abandon  the  enterprise  of  transport- 
ing a  large  land  and  naval  force  to  the  Mississippi.  Believing 
that  England,  with  her  immense  navy,  would  infest  the  coast  of 
Louisiana  and  blockade  her  ports,  so  soon  as  it  was  recognized 
as  a  province  of  France,  and  that  all  attempts  to  occupy  and 

*  Napoleon  had  stipalated  to  settle  upon  the  Duke  of  Parma,  the  son-in-law  of  his 
Catholic  nnyesty,  the  sovereignty  of  the  Kingdom  of  Tuscany,  with  the  title  of  "  King 
of  Etruria,"  in  consideration  of  the  retrocession  of  Louisiana  to  France.  The  Kingdom 
of  Tuscany,  with  its  rich  revenues,  was  estimated  at  one  hundred  millions  of  francs, 
which  wals  the  consideration  for  the  retrocession  of  Louisiana. — See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p. 
175.    Marbois's  Louisiana,  p.  170,  171. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY   OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


551 


defend  it  against  invasion  would  only  be  the  withdrawal  of  his 
troops  and  resources  from  his  capital,  without  adding  strength 
to  the  Republic,  he  determined  to  abandon  Louisiana,  and  con- 
centrate his  resources  for  the  defense  of  France  in  his  contest 
with  the  powers  of  Europe  on  the  Continent. 

Louisiana  was  a  vast  province,  sparsely  inhabited,  and  ut- 
terly unable  to  defend  herself  against  the  formidable  power  of 
the  British  navy,  by  which  it  might  be  devastated,  if  known  to 
be  a  province  of  France.  Humanity,  no  less  than  policy,  dic- 
tated the  propriety  of  an  effort  to  shield  it  from  the  horrors  of 
an  English  invasion. 

Under  these  circumstances.  Napoleon  determined  to  sacrifice 
his  ambition  and  his  glory  in  the  acquisition  of  Louisiana  to  the 
necessity  of  the  times,  and  to  throw  the  whole  province  into  the 
hands  of  the  United  States  before  its  alienation  from  the  Span- 
ish crown  should  have  been  known  to  the  enemies  of  France. 
The  United  States  were  the  friends  of  the  French  people,  the 
inveterate  enemies  of  British  power,  and  the  rivals  of  British 
manufactures  and  commerce  ;  the  possession  of  Louisiana  by 
the  United  States  would  therefore  tend  to  raise  up  a  barrier  to 
the  extension  of  British  power  in  America.  The  United  States, 
in  possession  of  Louisiana,  which  they  were  well  able  to  de- 
fend, would  indirectly  weaken  the  power  of  Great  Britain,  by 
raising  up  a  powerful  rival  on  the  ocean,  and  an  enemy  to  the 
extension  of  British  power  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  The  amount 
of  available  resources  which  might  be  derived  from  the  United 
States  in  consideration  of  the  transfer  of  Louisiana,  would  ena- 
ble him  to  prosecute  his  European  wars  with  vigor  and  effect. 
Such  was  the  reasoning  of  Napoleon. 

Accordingly,  near  the  close  of  the  year  1802,  he  instructed 
M.  Talleyrand  and  M.  Marbois,  minister  of  finance,  to  propose 
to  Mr.  Robert  R.  Livingston,  resident  minister  of  the  United 
States  in  Paris,  a  strictly  confidential  negotiation  for  this  pur- 
pose. Mr.  Jefferson,  then  President  of  the  United  States,  high- 
ly pleased  with  so  favorable  an  opportunity  of  terminating  for- 
ever all  the  difficulties  growing  out  of  the  Spanish  occupancy 
of  Louisiana,  determined  to  spare  no  means  for  securing  the 
prize.  The  negotiation  was  urged  with  prudent  promptitude, 
and  in  March  following  James  Monroe  was  associated  with 
Mr.  Livingstpn  to  press  the  negotiation  to  a  speedy  consum- 
mation. 


553 


BISTORT   OF  THE 


[book  IV. 


At  an  interview  with  the  American  minister,  Napoleon  frank- 
ly "  confessed  his  inability  to  retain  Louisiana ;  he  declared 
that,  were  it  possible  by  any  means  to  retain  it,  he  certainly 
never  would  consent  to  alienate  a  province  so  extensive  and 
valuable ;  but  he  knew  it  could  not  be  retained  without  im- 
mense treasure  and  blood  expended  in  its  defense.  He  declar- 
ed that  he  was  compelled  to  provide  for  the  safety  of  Louisi- 
ana before  it  should  come  into  his  hands,  and  that  he  was  de- 
sirous of  giving  the  United  States  a  magnificent  bargain,  an 
empire  for  a  mere  trifle."* 

The  American  minister  seized  upon  the  opportunity  of  se- 
curing for  the  United  States  so  valuable  an  acquisition.  Dis- 
patches were  transmitted  to  the  American  government,  and 
the  negotiation  was  formally  commenced  in  anticipation  of  in- 
structions upon  the  important  subject. 

The  first  consul  demanded  one  hundred  millions  of  francs, 
but  his  minister  might  consider  fifty  millions  of  francs  as  the 
extreme  minimum  price  demanded  for  the  province  of  Louisi- 
ana. The  minister  demanded  eighty  millions  of  francs  as  his 
price,  and  the  American  ministers  evinced  but  little  disposition 
to  reduce  the  amount.  The  negotiation  for  several  months, 
under  Mr.  Jefferson's  instructions,  had  been  conducted  with 
great  secrecy,  until  the  treaty  was  fully  consummated,  and  all 
the  terms  and  stipulations  had  been  fully  arranged.  The  pur- 
chase was  finally  eflfected  for  sixty  millions  of  francs,  to  be  paid 
by  the  United  States  in  stocks,  bearing  six  per  cent,  interest, 
and  redeemable  in  three  annual  instalments,  after  the  expira- 
tion of  fifteen  years,  besides  the  assumption,  on  the  part  of  the 
United  States,  of  the  payment  of  certain  indemnities  claimed  by 
their  citizens  for  French  spoliations,  to  an  amount  not  exceed- 
ing twenty  millions  of  francs.f    The  dollar  of  the  United  States 

*  Marbois's  Histoiy  of  Louisiana.  This  is  an  excellent  disquisition  or  historical  es- 
say upon  the  early  history  of  Louisiana  as  a  province  of  France,  its  political  changes, 
and  the  negotiations  preceding  its  sale  and  transfer  to  the  United  States.  It  contains, 
however,  but  little  historical  narrative  touching  its  internal  history,  its  trade,  bounda- 
lies,  or  natural  resources,  either  under  the  French  or  Spanish  regime.  It  is  the  work 
of  M.  Barb^  Marbois,  American  edition,  1830,  Philadelphia. 

t  The  terms  of  sale,  as  finally  agreed  on,  were,  that  the  United  States  should  pay 
sixty  millions  of  francs  in  stocks  I>earing  six  per  cent,  interest,  irredeemable  for  fifteen 
years,  afterward  to  be  discharged  in  three  equal  annual  instalments,  the  interest  to  be 
paid  in  Europe.  The  principal,  if  France  thought  proper  to  sell  the  stock,  to  be  dis- 
posed of  as  should  conduce  most  to  the  credit  of  the  American  fands. 

The  United  States  also  assumed  to  pay  to  their  citizens  a  sum  not  exceeding  twenty 
tnilTions  of  francs,  in  discharge  of  claims  due  to  them  from  France  under  the  conven- 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MIS3ISSIPFI. 


553 


was  receivable  and  negotiable  at  a  value  equal  to  five  livres 
and  eight  sous. 

The  treaty  was  at  length  concluded,  and  signed  by  the  min- 
isters of  each  power  on  the  30th  day  of  April,  1803.  By  this 
treaty  the  first  consul,  in  consideration  of  the  foregoing  sums 
to  be  paid  by  the  United  States,  and  certain  commercial  priv- 
ileges to  French  and  Spanish  commerce,  ceded  to  them  forev- 
er, in  full  sovereignty,  the  province  of  Louisiana,  with  all  its 
rights  and  appurtenances  in  full,  and  in  the  same  manner  as 
they  had  been  acquired  by  the  Republic  from  his  Catholic  maj- 
esty.* The  first  consul  obligated  himself  to  give  possession 
by  formal  delivery  of  the  province  within  six  months  from  the 
date  of  the  treaty.  Such  had  been  the  negotiations  in  Europe 
to  settle  the  political  destiny  of  Louisiana. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Spanish  authorities  of  Louisiana,  igno- 
rant of  the  transfer  of  the  province  to  the  United  States,  had 
been  making  every  preparation  for  the  reception  of  the  French 
commissioner,  and  for  the  delivery  of  the  province  to  him  in 
the  name  of  the  French  Republic.  General  Victor  had  been 
appointed  commissioner  on  the  part  of  the  French  Republic  for 
receiving  possession  of  Louisiana,  and  was  daily  expected,  with 
the  French  troops  under  his  command ;  but  on  the  24th  of 
March  a  vessel  arrived  from  Havre  de  Grace,  having  on  board 
the  baggage  of  M.  Laussat,  the  colonial  prefect,  who  was  to 
precede  the  captain-general  and  commissioner,  with  a  special 
mission  for  providing  supplies  for  the  troops,  and  making  ar- 
rangements for  the  organization  of  the  new  government  under 
the  authority  of  the  Republic.  The  same  vessel  brought  intel- 
ligence of  the  form  of  government  which  had  been  provided 
for  the  province  under  its  new  master.  The  principal  execu- 
tive officers  were  to  be  a  captain-general,  a  colonial  prefect, 
and  a  commissary  of  justice. 

The  captain-general  was  to  be  invested  with  all  the  powers 
heretofore  exercised  by  governors-general  under  the  Spanish 
dominion.  In  his  absence,  the  duties  of  his  office  were  to  de- 
volve upon  the  colonial  prefect,  or  upon  the  highest  military 

officer.f 

The  colonial  prefect  was  invested  with  authority  to  control 

tion  of  the  year  1800,  and  also  to  exempt  the  productions,  manufactures,  and  vessels  of 
France  and  Spain,  in  the  direct  trade  from  tliose  countries  respectively,  to  all  the  ports 
of  the  ceded  territory,  for  a  term  of  twelve  years. — Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  193. 
*  See  Martin,  vol.  u.,  190-192.  t  Idem,  p.  182,  183. 


554 


HISTORY   OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


and  administer  the  finances,  and  to  supervise  the  acts  of  all  the 
officers  of  the  administration ;  powers  similar,  and  more  extens- 
ive than  those  heretofore  exercised  by  the  Spanish  intendant, 
including  those  exercised,  also,  by  the  former  French  commis- 
saries-general and  ordonnateurs. 

The  commissary  of  justice  was  to  be  clothed  with  authority 
to  superintend  all  the  courts  of  justice,  and  the  ministerial  du- 
ties of  all  officers  of  the  law;  to  preside  and  vote  in  any  court; 
to  regulate  the  conduct  of  all  clerks  and  officers  of  the  courts ; 
to  superintend  the  preparation  of  a  civil  and  criminal  code ;  to 
make  monthly  reports  upon  all  these  matters  to  the  captain- 
general,  or  to  the  minister.* 

Such  was  the  outline  of  the  government  designed  for  Loui- 
siana under  the  authority  of  the  first  consul ;  a  form  of  gov- 
ernment which  had  not  gone  fully  into  operation  when  it  was 
superseded  by  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States. 

About  the  same  time  a  French  national  vessel  had  arrived 
at  the  Balize,  with  M.  Laussat,  the  colonial  prefect,  on  board. 
Upon  intelligence  of  this  arrival,  Governor  Salcedo  dispatched 
the  government  barge  under  Morales,  with  a  captain  and  lieu- 
tenant of  infantry,  to  congratulate  and  welcome  the  representa- 
tive of  the  French  Republic,  and  to  escort  him  to  the  city.  He 
arrived  on  the  26th  of  March,  and  was  conducted  to  the  gov- 
ernment-house, where  he  met  a  cordial  reception  from  Salcedo 
and  Morales,  surrounded  by  the  staff  of  the  regular  army  and 
of  the  militia,  and  by  the  heads  of  the  clergy.  At  this  inter- 
view, M.  Laussat  announced  the  determination  of  the  French 
Republic  to  use  every  effort  to  promote  the  prosperity  of  the 
province ;  to  preserve  order  ;  to  maintain  the  laws ;  to  respect 
the  treaties  with  the  Indian  tribes ;  and  to  protect  public  worship 
without  any  change  of  religion.  He  also  informed  those  pres- 
ent that  the  land  and  naval  forces  under  General  Victor  had 
sailed  from  Holland,  as  he  supposed,  about  the  last  of  January, 
and  would,  in  all  probability,  reach  New  Orleans  before  the 
middle  of  April.f  Great  joy  was  evinced  by  the  French  pop- 
ulation at  the  prospect  of  a  speedy  reunion  with  France. 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  colonial  prefect  issued  a  procla- 
mation in  the  name  of  the  French  Republic.  In  this,  after  al- 
luding to  the  weak  and  corrupt  government  which,  nearly 
forty  years  before,  after  an  ignominious  war,  had  yielded  to  a 

"  See  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  185.  t  Idem,  p.  185, 186. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


5.5.5 


dishonorable  peace,  with  the  separation  of  Louisiana  from 
France,  he  informed  the  people  that  France  was  again  tri- 
umphant, and  that,  amid  the  prodigious  victories  and  triumphs 
of  the  late  Revolution,  France  and  all  Frenchmen  had  cast  an 
affectionate  eye  to  estranged  Louisiana,  and  that  the  fond 
mother  was  again  about  to  embrace  her  long-lost  offspring,  and 
wipe  out  the  disgrace  of  the  former  separation ;  that  he  who 
now  controlled  the  destinies  of  France  was  no  less  remarkable 
for  the  love  and  confidence  inspired  by  his  wisdom,  and  the 
happiness  of  his  people,  than  for  the  terror  infused  into  his  en- 
emies by  the  rapidity  and  irresistible  glory  of  his  victories ; 
and  that  the  whole  energies  of  his  great  mind  would  be  devoted 
to  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  people  of  Louisiana,  and 
to  the  development  of  the  unbounded  natural  resources  peculiar 
to  the  province.  He  concluded  by  a  flattering  encomium  upon 
the  fidelity,  courage,  and  patriotism  of  the  people  of  Louisiana, 
to  whom  he  recommended  the  worthy  and  highly  honorable 
magistrates  with  whom  he  was  associated  in  the  government.* 

A  few  days  afterward,  M.  Laussat  received  an  address, 
signed  by  a  number  of  the  most  respectable  citizens  of  the  city 
and  province,  expressing  in  very  flattering  terms,  in  behalf  of 
the  people,  the  joy  inspired  by  his  arrival,  as  the  harbinger  of 
their  deliverance  and  reunion  with  France.f 

On  the  10th  of  April,  the  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo,  having 
been  associated  with  Salcedo  as  commissioner  on  the  part  of 
Spain  for  the  delivery  of  Louisiana,  returned  from  a  visit  to 
Havana,  and  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office. 

On  the  18th  of  May  Salcedo  issued  his  proclamation  an- 
nouncing the  intention  of  his  Catholic  majesty  to  surrender  the 
province  to  the  French  Republic  ;  but  that  his  paternal  regard 
would  accompany  the  people,  as  he  had  made  ample  arrange- 
ments with  the  latter  for  their  protection  and  future  prosperity. 

In  this  proclamation  the  governor  recited  the  limits  of  Lou- 
isiana, as  embraced  in  the  contemplated  surrender,  to  include 
all  Louisiana  west  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Island  of  New  Or- 
leans on  the  east  side,  it  being  the  same  ceded  to  Spain  by 
France  at  the  peace  of  1763.  The  settlements  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Mississippi,  between  the  Bayou  Manchac  and  the  thirty- 
first  parallel  of  latitude,  would  still  pertain  to  the  government 
of  West  Florida.  J     This  was  the  Spanish  construction  of  the 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  187,  188. 


t  Idem. 


t  Idem,  p.  let). 


506 


HISTORY   OP   THE 


[book  IV. 


limits  of  Louisiana ;  but  the  United  States  subsequently  claim- 
ed other  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi. 

Every  thing  now  seemed  ready  for  the  formal  delivery  of 
the  province,  awaiting  only  the  arrival  of  General  Victor  with 
the  troops.  The  tri-colored  cockade  was  already  in  the  hands 
of  hundreds,  ready  to  be  attached  to  every  hat  as  soon  as  the 
French  flag  should  supersede  that  of  Spain,  and  each  French- 
man considered  himself  a  member  of  the  French  Republic. 

The  first  of  June  arrived,  and  no  tidings  were  received  of  the 
approach  of  General  Victor.  At  length  a  vessel  from  Bor- 
deaux brought  intelligence  that  the  province  had  been  sold  by 
the  first  consul,  Bonaparte,  to  the  United  States.* 

In  the  mean  time,  Bonaparte,  having  declined  sending  Gen- 
eral Victor  and  his  troops  to  Louisiana,  had  made  other  pro- 
vision for  the  delivery  of  the  province.  On  the  sixth  day  of 
June,  he  had  appointed  M.  Laussat  as  commissioner  on  the  part 
of  France  for  receiving  the  formal  delivery  of  Louisiana.  To 
him,  also,  were  sent  instructions  for  the  transfer  of  the  same 
into  the  hands  of  the  American  commissioners,  agreeably  to 
the  treaty  of  April  30th,  ISOS.f 

The  government  of  the  United  States,  in  the  mean  time,  had 
taken  measures  to  secure  the  prompt  delivery  of  the  province, 
and  the  extension  of  the  Federal  jurisdiction  over  the  country. 

Large  bodies  of  troops  had  been  concentrating  in  the  southern 

'  ■   ' '     ■  '  ^  '  '  .\    t     '  •'         \ 

"  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  190. 

t  1.  The  treaty  of  Paris  incladed  in  the  cession  of  Louisiana  all  the  islands  adjacent  to 
Louisiana ;  all  public  lots,  squares,  vacant  lands ;  all  public  buildings,  barracks,  forts,  and 
fortifications;  all  archives,  public  papers,  and  docoments  relating  to  the  domain  and 
sovereignty  of  the  province. 

2.  It  is  also  provided  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  ceded  territory  shall  be  incorporated 
into  the  Federal  Union,  and  as  soon  as  possible  they  shall  be  admitted  to  the  ei^oy- 
ment  of  all  the  rights  and  inununities  of  citizens  of  the  United  States,  under  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Federal  Constitution. 

3.  France  is  to  appoint  a  commissioner,  and  send  him  to  Louisiana  for  the  purpose  of 
receiving  possession  of  the  province  from  Spain,  and  to  deliver  it  over,  in  the  name  of 
the  French  Republic,  to  the  commissioners,  or  ageats  of  the  United  States. 

4.  Immediately  after  the  formal  transfer  and  delivery  to  the  United  States,  the  com- 
missioner of  France  is  to  deliver  up  all  military  posts  in  New  Orleans  and  throughout 
the  province,  and  withdraw  the  troops  of  France. 

5.  Commercial  privileges  were  to  be  extended  by  the  United  States  to  French  and 
Spanish  ships  entering  the  ports  of  Louisiana  for  twelve  years,  during  which  they 
were  to  pay  no  higher  duties  than  citizens  of  the  United  States  coming  directly  from 
the  same  countries. 

6.  By  two  separate  articles  of  convention,  of  the  same  date  with  the  treaty,  the  con- 
ditions for  the  payments  severally  to  be  made  to  the  French  Republic  and  to  the  Amer- 
ican citizens,  are  fully  set  forth.— See  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  191,  192.  Also, 
Marbois's  Louisiana,  p.  403-412. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


667 


portion  of  the  Mississippi  Territory,  north  of  the  West  Florida 
line,  in  the  vicinity  of  Natchez  and  Fort  Adams. 

Only  a  few  months  had  elapsed  when  the  unwelcome  Intel- 
ligence  of  the  cession  to  the  United  States  reached  the  King 
of  S[)ain.  Indignant  at  the  contemplated  transfer,  he  instructed 
his  minister  at  Washington  City,  the  Marquis  de  Casa  Yurujo, 
to  remonstrate  with  the  government,  and  to  file  with  the  De- 
partment of  State  his  formal  protest  against  the  transfer ;  rep- 
resenting the  conditions  on  which  it  had  been  transferred  to 
the  first  consul,  which  would  now  impair  the  claim  of  the  Unit- 
ed States ;  for  the  first  consul  had  stipulated  with  his  Catholic 
majesty  that  Louisiana  never  should  be  alienated  from  France. 

The  Federal  government  disregarded  the  remonstrance  and 
protest  of  the  Spanish  court ;  yet  the  first  consul,  as  well  as  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  upon  this  ground  entertained 
serious  apprehensions  lest  the  King  of  Spain  should  carry  out 
his  opposition  by  instructing  the  governor  and  captain-general 
of  Louisiana  to  refuse  the  formal  transfer  and  delivery  of  the 
province.*       <      / 

Anticipating  such  opposition  from  the  King  of  Spain,  and  for 
the  purpose  of  meeting  any  contingency  on  this  ground,  Mr. 
Jefferson,  President  of  the  United  States,  convened  Congress 
about  the  middle  of  October,  and  laid  the  whole  matter  of  the 
treaty  relative  to  the  purchase  of  Louisiana  before  the  Senate. 
The  treaty  was  ratified  on  the  21st  of  October,  and  after  due 
deliberation,  Congress  resolved  to  sustain  the  president  in  his 
views  of  urging  the  transfer  and  delivery,  agreeably  to  the  stip- 
ulations of  treaty  with  the  French  Republic.  By  an  act  passed 
October  30th,  the  president  was  authorized  to  take  possession  of 
the  ceded  territory,  and  to  maintain  over  the  same  the  author- 
ity of  the  United  States,  under  such  persons  as  he  might  au- 

*  The  American  minister  had  been  instructed  to  ascertain  from  the  Spanish  court 
whether  any  such  order  was  likely  to  be  given :  the  possibility  of  a  refusal  on  the  part 
of  the  Spanish  authorities  to  surrender  to  the  United  States  had  been  suggested  to  the 
first  consul ;  but  he  declared  that  no  refusal  on  their  part  need  be  apprehended ;  that 
he  would  permit  no  such  thing,  and  that  he  guarantied  the  delivery.  No  indication  of 
the  kind  was  evinced  at  any  subsequent  peripd  of  the  transactions ;  and  early  in  Janu- 
ary following,  several  weeks  after  the  final  transfer  and  delivery  to  the  United  States, 
the  Spanish  minister  at  Washington  gave  assurance  to  the  Department  of  State  that 
his  sovereign  had  given  no  order  whatever  for  opposing  the  delivery  of  Louisiana,  and 
the  rumor  to  that  efiect  of  the  preceding  year  was  entirely  groundless.  The  minister 
added,  that  he  was  commanded  to  make  it  known  that  his  majesty  had  since  thought 
it  proper  to  renounce  his  protest,  although  made  justly  and  upon  proper  grounds ;  thus 
nfibrding  "  a  new  proof  of  his  benevolence  and  friendship  for  the  United  States." — See 
Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  S39.  .  -     • 


558 


HISTORY    OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


thorize  to  exercise  a  provisional  civil  and  militory  jurisdiction 
in  the  province.  To  this  end  he  was  empowered  to  employ  such 
portion  of  the  navy  and  army  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the 
militia  of  the  neighboring  states  and  territories,  as  he  might 
deem  requisite.* 

The  president  proceeded  to  complete  his  arrangements  for 
the  delivery,  final  transfer,  and  occupation  of  the  province  by 
the  United  States.  On  the  part  of  the  United  States,  the  com- 
missioners appointed  by  him  were  Governor  William  C.  C. 
Claiborne,  of  the  Mississippi  Territory,  and  General  James  Wil- 
kinson, commander-in-chief  of  the  army.  Governor  Claiborne 
was  also  authorized  to  exercise  provisionally  all  the  civil  au- 
thority pertaining  to  the  former  Spanish  governor  and  intend- 
ant,  for  the  preservation  of  order  and  the  protection  of  persons 
and  property.f 

The  colonial  prefect,  and  commissioner  on  the  part  of  the 
French  Republic,  M.  Laussat,  had  remained  in  Louisiana  from 
the  period  of  his  arrival  in  March,  engaged  in  the  duties  of  his 
commission,  preparing  the  minds  of  the  people  for  the  approach- 
ing change  of  government,  first  as  a  province  of  France,  and 
finally  as  a  dependence  of  the  American  Republic. 

At  length,  further  delay  being  unnecessary,  the  ceremonies 
and  formality  of  delivery  from  the  crown  of  Spain  to  the  French 
Republic  were,  by  appointment,  to  take  place  in  the  city  of  New 
Orleans  on  the  30th  day  of  November.  On  the  morning  of 
that  day  the  Spanish  flag  was  displayed  from  a  lofty  flag-staff 
in  the  center  of  the  public  square.  At  noon  the  Spanish  regi- 
ment of  Louisiana  and  a  company  of  Mexican  dragoons  were 
drawn  up  before  the  City  Hall,  on  the  right,  and  the  militia  of 
the  city  on  the  left.  The  commissioners  of  Spain,  Governor 
Salcedo  and  the  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo,  proceeded  to  the  front 
of  the  City  Hall,  where  they  were  soon  afterward  joined  by  the 
French  commissioner,  M.  Laussat.  The  latter  produced  an 
order  from  his  Catholic  majesty  directing  the  delivery  of  the 
province  of  Louisiana  to  the  authorized  agent  of  the  first  con- 
sul. Salcedo,  in  exchange,  immediately  presented  him  with 
the  keys  of  the  city.  The  Marquis  de  Casa  Calvo  then  pro- 
claimed that  those  of  his  majesty's  subjects  who  preferred  to 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  193.    See,  alBO,  Morboifl,  p.  322-324. 

t  Martin,  vol.  ii ,  p.  193.    See,  also,  American  State  Papers,  folio  edition,  vol.  on  For- 
eign Affairs,  p.  61,  62.    Also,  Stoddart's  Sketches,  p.  103. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF    TUB    MISBISriirpI. 


550 


remain  under  the  authority  of  tho  French  Republic  wore  hence- 
forth absolved  from  their  allegiance  to  the  crown  of  Spain. 
The  three  commisgiouer?  then  advanced  to  the  main  balcony 
in  front  of  the  City  Hull,  whin  the  Spanish  flag  gradually  de- 
scended during  the  salute  of  a  diaclnrgt  of  artillery.  The  flag 
of  France  soon  afterward  asct^nded  to  the  Iwad  of  the  flai^-stafl*, 
saluted  by  another  discln  rfre  of  arfillery.  Thus  terminated  the 
Spanish  dominion  in  Louisiana,  after  a  lapse  of  more  than  thir- 
ty-four years.* 

The  dominion  of  France  had  again  resumed  its  sway,  and 
M.  Laussat  immediately  issued  his  proclamation  to  the  people. 
It  informed  them  that  the  mission  on  which  he  came  to  Lou- 
isiana had  given  rise  to  many  fond  hopes  and  honorable  ex- 
pectations in  his  mind  relative  to  their  reunion  with  the  moth- 
er country ;  but  the  face  of  things  had  changed,  and  he  now 
was  commissioned  shortly  to  perform  a  duty  which,  although 
less  pleasing  to  him,  was  far  more  advantageous  to  them ;  that 
although  the  flag  of  the  French  Republic  was  displayed,  and 
the  sound  of  her  cannon  had  announced  the  return  of  the 
French  dominion,  it  was  comparatively  for  a  moment,  for  he 
was  shortly  to  deliver  the  province  into  the  hands  of  the  com- 
missioners of  the  United  States.f 

In  reference  to  this  change,  he  remarked,  that  circumstances 
of  great  moment  had  given  a  new  direction  to  the  benevolent 
views  and  intentions  of  France  toward  Louisiana ;  that  the 
province  had  been  ceded  to  the  United  States,  as  the  surest 
pledge  of  increasing  friendship  between  the  two  Republics, 
and  of  the  future  aggrandizement  of  Louisiana.  He  drew 
their  attention  to  that  provision  in  the  treaty  of  cession  which 
secured  to  them  the  rank  of  an  independent  member  of  the 
Federal  Union,  and  congratulated  them  upon  the  happy  result 
of  becoming  an  important  part  of  a  nation  which  had  already 
become  powerful,  and  distinguished  for  their  industry,  patriot- 
ism, and  intelligence.  He  alluded  to  that  feature  in  the  new 
arrangement  which  would  place  the  government  in  their  own 
hands,  secure  from  the  cupidity  and  malversation  in  office  of 
those  sent  to  govern  them  from  a  remote  parent-country,  sur- 
rounded by  facilities  of  concealment  operating  as  a  temptation, 
which  too  often  corrupts  the  most  virtuous  rulers.  They  were 
about  to  pass  under  a  government  which  made  all  its  rulers 


I 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  195. 


t  Idem,  p.  195,  196. 


560 


HISTORY    OP  THE 


[book  IV. 


dependent  upon  the  will  of  the  people,  expressed  through  their 
suffrages  at  the  ballot-box.  He  adverted  to  the  many  advan- 
tages of  a  free  and  independent  form  of  government,  affording 
to  them  the  immense  facilities  of  the  trade  which  their  loca- 
tion near  the  outlet  of  the  Mississippi  would  throw  into  their 
hands  ;  the  trade  of  the  great  river  of  the  United  States,  bear- 
ing upon  its  surface  the  wealth  of  rich  and  populous  states, 
and  conferring  upon  them  commercial  advantages  and  privi- 
leges which  they  could  not  possibly  enjoy  under  the  colonial 
government  of  France.*  « 

The  same  day  M.  Laussat,  as  colonial  prefect,  issued  a  num- 
ber of  proclamations  and  orders  in  relation  to  the  government 
of  the  province,  abolishing  the  old  regnancy,  and  substituting 
the  jurisdiction  of  France  and  the  forms  of  the  French  juris  • 
prudence.  The  Cabaldo  was  abolished,  and  a  municipality 
was  organized  in  its  stead.  The  municipality  consisted  of  a 
mayor  and  two  adjuncts,  with  ten  members.  The  office  of- 
mayor  was  conferred  upon  M.  Bore,  and  that  of  adjuncts  upon 
M.  Destrehan  and  M.  Sauve.  The  members  appointed  were, 
Messieurs  Livaudais,  Petit  Cavelier,  Villiere,  Jones,  Fortier, 
Donaldson,  Faurie,  AUard,  Tuveaud,  and  Watkins.  M,  Der- 
bigny  was  appointed  secretary,  and  M.  Labatut  was  treasurer.! 

The  Black  Code,  except  such  portions  as  were  incompatible 
with  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States,  was  de- 
clared to  be  still  in  force. 

Soon  afterward,  the  Spanish  troops  were  withdrawn,  and 
the  military  posts  were  evacuated.  In  the  city  and  suburbs 
of  New  Orleans  there  were  four  military  posts,  or  forts,  relin- 
quished by  the  Spanish  troops,  which  might  be  exposed  to  the 
depredations,  and  equally  so  to  the  unlawful  occupancy  of 
disaffected  persons  and  nocturnal  disturbers  of  the  peace. 
The  troops  of  the  United  States  designed  for  the  occupation 
of  these  forts  not  having  arrived  within  the  limits  of  the  ceded 
province,  many  were  apprehensive  of  outrage  and  violence 
from  the  numbers  of  lawless  and  disaffected  populace.  These 
were  composed  of  the  lowest  class  of  Spaniards,  Mexicans, 
and  free  persons  of  color  which  infested  the  city,  and  other 
disorderly  persons,  and  desperadoes  of  all  nations,  who,  releas- 
ed from  the  restraint  of  a  standing  army,  might  be  prompted, 
by  the  hope  of  pillage,  to  fire  the  city,  or  to  commit  other  vio- 
lence. 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  196. 


t  Idem,  p.  197. 


A.D.  1803.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE   MISSISSIPPI. 


561 


To  guard  against  any  such  attempt,  and  to  preserve  order 
in  the  city,  a  number  of  enterprising  young  Americans  associ- 
ated themselves  into  a  volunteer  battalion,  to  be  placed  under 
the  command  of  Daniel  Clarke,  junior,  the  American  consul. 
Their  first  muster  was  at  Davis's  rope-walk,  on  Canal-street, 
where  they  were  joined  by  a  number  of  patriotic  young  Creole 
Frenchmen,  who  continued  to  serve  until  the  battalion  was 
finally  discharged.  Having  organized,  they  placed  themselves 
under  their  commander,  and  proceeded  to  the  headquarters  of 
the  colonial  prefect,  and  made  a  formal  tender  of  their  services 
for  the  purpose  of  preserving  order  in  the  city,  and  for  the  oc- 
cupancy of  the  forts  until  the  arrival  of  the  American  commis- 
sioners and  troops.  The  battalion  continued  to  increase,  by 
the  voluntary  enrollment  of  Americans  and  French  Creoles, 
until  the  entire  number  exceeded  three  hundred  men.  The 
Americans  were  chiefly  captains  and  mates  of  vessels,  super- 
cargoes, merchants,  clerks,  and  seamen  belonging  to  vessels  in 
port.  The  French,  by  their  zeal,  vigilance,  and  patriotism 
during  their  term  of  service,  proved  themselves  worthy  of 
American  citizenship.* 

Their  services  were  gladly  accepted,  and  detachments  from 
their  number  were  detailed  upon  regular  tours  of  duty  in  pa- 
trolling the  city  by  day  and  by  night,  and  in  maintaining  guard 
in  the  forts,  until  the  17th  of  December,  when  the  American 
troops  had  arrived  in  the  vicinity  of  the  city.t 

In  the  mean  time,  Governor  Claiborne  had  been  preparing  to 
advance  down  to  New  Orleans  to  consummate  the  delivery  of 


*  This  volunteer  battalion  was  formed  at  the  instance  of  the  following  gentlemen, 
then  resident  in  New  Orleans,  viz.;  George  Martin,  since  parish  judge  of  St.  Landry, 
Colonel  Reuben  Kemper,  George  King,  George  Newman,  Benjamin  Morgan,  Daniel 
Clarke,  American  congul.  Dr.  William  Flood,  since  a  distinguished  physician  of  New 
Orleans,  Maunsel  White,  and  Woodson  Wren,  present  postmaster  in  Natchez.  But 
few  of  the  original  members  of  the  battalion  ore  Uving  at  this  time,  which  is  now  fortj-- 
one  years  since  the  delivery  of  Louisiana  to  the  United  States  commissioners.  Thcro 
were  two  of  the  survivors  still  living  in  Adams  county,  Mississippi,  in  February,  1845. 
These  are  Woodson  Wren  and  George  Newman.  Martin  states  tliis  battalion  to  havo 
been  composed  of  only  one  hundred  and  twenty  Americans  ;  but  Dr.  Wren  and  George 
Newman,  Esq.,  both  members  of  the  battalion,  sustain  the  authority  of  the  text. 

t  The  city  was  defended  by  four  strong  forts,  situated  at  each  comer,  and  nearly 
half  a  mile  apart.  Forts  St.  Charles  and  St.  Louis  were  regular  foitresscs,  above  and 
below  the  city,  near  the  bank  of  the  river.  Each  was  built  of  brick,  surrounded  by  a 
ditch  and  glacis  ;  the  ditch  was  deep  and  filled  with  water,  over  which  were  draw- 
bridges. Those  in  the  rear  of  the  city  wore  regular  stockades,  securely  fortified. 
These  forts  were  tlirown  open  and  evacuated  by  the  Spanish  garrisons  upon  the  sur 
render  of  the  province  to  the  French  prefect. 

Vol.  I.— N  n 


562 


HISTORY    OP    THE 


[book  IV. 


Louisiana  to  the  Federal  government.  Five  hundred  Tennes- 
see militia,  under  Colonel  Dougherty,  had  advanced  as  far  as 
Natchez,  where  they  were  awaiting  further  orders.  The  vol- 
unteer troop  of  the  Mississippi  Territory  had  received  orders  to 
hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  march  on  the  10th  of  Decem- 
ber, in  company  with  the  volunteers  from  Tennessee. 

^i  Fort  Adams,  Governor  Claiborne  met  with  his  colleague. 
General  Wilkinson,  who  had  just  returned  from  a  tour  in  the 
Chocta  nation.  The  troops  at  this  post  were  put  in  motion, 
and  pursued  their  march  with  the  volunteers  toward  New  Or- 
leans. On  the  17th  of  December,  they  encamped  within  two 
miles  of  the  city.  On  the  following  day  the  commissioners, 
Claiborne  and  Wilkinson,  presented  themselves  to  the  French 
prefect  in  a  formal  introductory  visit,  which  was  returned  at 
the  American  camp  next  day  by  the  colonial  prefect,  attended  by 
the  municipality  and  a  number  of  militia  officers.  The  follow- 
ing Monday,  December  20th,  was  fixed  as  the  day  for  the 
formal  delivery  of  the  province  to  the  United  States.* 

On  Monday  morning,  at  sunrise,  the  tri-colored  flag  was  ele- 
vated to  the  summit  of  the  flag-staff"  in  the  public  square.  At 
eleven  o'clock  A.M.  the  militia  paraded  near  it,  and  precisely 
at  noon  the  commissioners  of  the  United  States,  at  the  head 
of  the  American  troops,  entered  the  city.  The  regular  troops 
formed  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  square,  facing  the  militia. 
At  this  time  the  colonial  prefect,  attended  by  his  secretary  and 
a  number  of  French  citizens,  advanced  from  his  quarters  to  the 
City  Hall,  saluted  as  he  approached  by  a  discharge  of  artillery. 
At  the  City  Hall  a  large  concourse  of  the  most  respectable 
citizens  awaited  his  approach.  Here,  in  the  presence  of  the 
assembled  multitude,  the  prefect  delivered  to  the  American 
commissioners  the  keys  of  the  city,  emblematic  of  the  formal 
delivery  of  the  province,  f 

He  then  declared  that  such  of  the  inhabitants  as  desired  to 
pass  under  the  government  of  the  United  States  were  absolved 
from  their  allegiance  to  the  French  Republic. 

Governor  Claiborne  then  arose  and  oflTered  to  the  people  of 
Louisiana  his  congratulations  on  the  auspicious  event  which 
had  placed  them  beyond  the  reach  of  chance.  He  assured  them 
that  the  people  of  the  United  States  received  them  as  brothers, 
and  would  hasten  to  extend  to  them  the  benefits  of  the  free  in- 


*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  198, 


t  Idem,  p.  199. 


A.D.  1804.] 


VALLEY    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


608 


stitutions  which  had  formed  the  basis  of  our  unexampled  pros- 
perity, and  that,  in  the  mean  time,  they  should  be  protected  in 
their  Uberty,  their  property,  and  their  religion ;  their  agricul- 
ture should  be  encouraged,  and  their  commerce  favored. 

The  Iri-colored  flag  of  France  slowly  descended,  meetmg 
the  rising  flag  of  the  United  States  at  half-mast.  After  the 
pause  of  a  few  minutes,  the  flag  of  France  descended  to  the 
ground,  and  the  star-spangled  banner  rose  to  the  summit  of  the 
flag-staff*,  saluted  by  the  roar  of  artillery  and  the  joyful  re- 
sponse of  the  American  people,  accompanied  by  a  full  band  of 
martial  music  to  the  air  of  "  Hail  Columbia."*  The  windows, 
balconies,  and  corridors  of  the  vicinity  were  crowded  with 
"  ladies,  brilliant  beyond  comparison,"  each  with  the  American 
flag  in  miniature  proudly  waving  over  their  heads. 

The  same  day  Governor  Claiborne  issued  his  proclamation 
announcing  the  supremacy  of  the  Federal  jurisdiction  over  the 
province,  and  the  termination  of  all  foreign  dominion.  He  ex- 
horted the  people  to  be  firm  in  their  allegiance  to  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  and  obedient  to  the  laws  which 
were  to  be  extended  over  them ;  he  assured  them  that  their 
liberty,  their  rights,  and  their  property  should  be  protected 
against  all  violence  from  any  quarter,  and  that  in  due  time 
they  should  be  entitled  to  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  an  in- 
dependent state  government. 

[A.D.  1804.]  The  formal  delivery  of  the  remote  posts  and 
their  dependencies  took  place  during  the  following  spring.  On 
the  12th  of  January  the  post  of  Concord  was  delivered,  with 
great  ceremony  and  form,  by  the  Spanish  commandant,  Stephen 
Minor,  into  the  hands  of  Major  Ferdinand  L.  Claiborne,  spe- 
cial agent  of  the  French  colonial  prefect,  and  agent  of  Governor 
Claiborne,  in  behalf  of  the  United  States.  Having  been  duly 
authorized  for  this  purpose.  Major  Claiborne,  accompanied  by 
a  detachment  of  Tennessee  volunteers  under  Captain  Russel, 
and  the  volunteer  company  of  Captain  Nicholls  from  Natchez, 
and  a  procession  of  the  citizens  of  Natchez,  headed  by  the 
mayor  of  the  city,  presented  himself  before  the  fort,  which  was 
formally  delivered  by  the  exchange  of  flags,  with  the  usual  in- 
terchange of  ceremonies  by  the  respective  commandants.f 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  post  of  Washita  was  delivered  in 


*  Martin's  Louisiana,  vol.  ii.,  p.  199.    Also,  Natchez  Herald,  January  3d,  1804. 
t  S»,o  Natchez  Herald,  January  14th,  1804. 


564 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


[book  IV. 


like  manner  by  the  Spanish  commandant,  Don  Vincente  Fran- 
cisco Fejeiro,  to  Captain  Bomar,  agent  of  the  United  States. 
On  the  9th  of  March  the  post  of  St.  Louis,  with  the  province 
of  Upper  Louisiana,  was  formally  delivered  by  the  Spanish 
lieutenant-governor  to  Major  Amos  Stoddart,  commissioned 
as  representative  of  the  French  Republic,  in  which  capacity, 
on  the  following  day,  he  formally  delivered  the  post  and  dis- 
trict to  the  agent  of  the  United  States.  Major  Stoddart  hav- 
ing been  appointed  also  civil  and  military  commandant  of  Up- 
per Louisiana,  with  the  authority  and  prerogatives  of  the  form- 
er Spanish  lieutenant-governor,  immediately  entered  upon  the 
duties  of  his  office.*  In  his  proclamation  he  adverted  to  the 
auspicious  events  which  had  made  them  a  portion  of  the  Amer- 
ican Republic,  and  had  elevated  them  from  the  rank  of  coloni- 
al subjects  to  free  and  independent  citizens,  the  rights  and  priv- 
ileges of  which  would  be  soon  extended  to  them.  He  express- 
ed his  confidence  in  their  patriotism  and  submission  to  the  laws ; 
the  prejudices  and  resentments  of  former  times  had  been  buried 
in  oblivion,  and  they  were  now  united  to  the  great  Republican 
family  by  a  bond  of  mutual  interest,  for  the  advancement  of 
the  common  happiness,  and  a  generous  rivalry  for  commercial 
prosperity  and  national  independence. 

Thus  the  authority  of  the  United  States  was  peaceably  ex- 
tended over  the  whole  province  of  Louisiana,  comprising  one 
of  the  most  fertile  and  magnificent  regions  on  earth,  whose  lim- 
its had  never  been  definitively  established.  It  was  the  inter- 
est of  Spain  to  restrict  its  limits  as  much  as  practicable,  and  it 
was  the  interest  of  the  United  States  to  construe  its  boundaries 
with  the  utmost  latitude. 

The  West  Florida  district  lying  south  of  the  line  of  demarka- 
tion,  and  west  of  the  Perdido  River  and  Bay,  was  retained  by 
Spain  as  a  portion  of  Florida.  The  western  portion  of  this 
district,  lying  between  the  Mississippi  and  Pearl  Rivers,  was 
erected  into  the  "  Government  of  Baton  Rouge,"  which  was  ad- 
ministered by  the  lieutenant-governor,  Don  Carlos  de  Grandpre, 
comprising  the  posts  of  Manchac,  Thompson's  Creek,  and 
Bayou  Sara,  until  the  7th  of  December,  1810,  when  the  people 
renounced  the  dominion  of  Spain,  and  claimed  the  protection 
of  the  United  States.f 


*  Stoddart'a  Sketches  of  Louisiana,  p.  106,  107. 

t  See  book  v.,  chapter  xv.,  "  Territory  of  Orleans,"  &c. 


A.D.  1804.] 


VALLEY  OP  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


565 


Henoe  the  difficulties  relative  to  boundaries  between  Spain 
and  the  United  States  were  again  opened.  Spain  still  held  do- 
minion over  the  Mexican  provinces  west  of  Louisiana,  and  over 
the  Floridas  on  the  east.  The  western  limits  of  Florida,  pre- 
vious to  the  peace  of  1763,  were  the  Perdido  River  and  Bay  ; 
the  territory  west  of  the  Perdido,  and  north  of  the  Bayou  Iber- 
ville and  lakes,  previous  to  1763,  had  been  a  portion  of  Lou- 
isiana under  the  dominion  of  France,  and  was  never  attached 
to  Spanish  Florida.  By  the  dismemberment  of  1763,  Great 
Britain  became  possessed  of  this  portion  of  Louisiana ;  and  by 
the  king's  order  in  council  in  the  following  year,  it  was  annexed 
to  the  government  of  West  Florida,  and  as  such  it  was  sub- 
sequently ceded  to  Spain  by  the  treaty  of  1783.  This  was  the 
origin  of  the  Spanish  claim  to  the  territory  west  of  Mobile. 

The  United  States  purchased  Louisiana  with  the  boundaries 
acknowledged  while  in  possession  of  France  originally,  before 
the  dismemberment,  and  with  such  boundaries  as  properly  per- 
tained to  it,  after  the  due  observance  of  all  subsequent  treaties. 
Hence  the  United  States  claimed  Louisiana  as  extending  to 
the  Perdido  on  the  east,  and  north  to  the  southern  limit  of  the 
United  States,  as  established  by  the  treaty  of  1783.  On  the 
west  side  of  the  Mississippi  they  claimed  to  the  Rio  del  Norte, 
the  western  boundary  claimed  by  France  previous  to  the  treaty 
of  1762  with  Spain.  Thus  the  United  States  claimed  Lou- 
isiana as  comprising  the  whole  country  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
from  the  Bay  of  Mobile  inclusive  to  the  western  limit  of  Texas.* 

The  population  of  the  province  of  Louisiana,  near  the  close 
of  the  year  1803,  according  to  a  report  made  to  the  Secretary 
of  State  by  the  American  consul  at  New  Orleans,  gives  a  grand 
total  of  about  forty-nine  thousand  and  five  hundred  souls,  in- 
cluding the  West  Florida  district  and  the  ports  of  Mobile  and 
Pensacola.  Of  this  amount,  the  city  of  New  Orleans  contained 
about  eight  thousand  souls;  Mobile  and  its  dependencies  eight 
hundred  and  ten  souls ;  Pensacola  four  hundred  and  four  souls  ; 
Baton  Rouge  and  Galveston  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and 
sixty  souls;  Upper  Louisiana  six -thousand  and  twenty-eight 
souls,  the  same  as  it  contained  in  1799.f  These  estimates,  of 
course,  exclude  the  numerous  tribes  and  remnants  of  native  In- 
dians remaining  in  different  portions  of  the  province. 

The  commerce  and  trade  of  New  Orleans  had  become  extens- 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  201,  202.    Stoddort,  p.  112-114.         t  Martin,  vol  ii.,  p.  205. 


066 


HISTORY   OF   THE 


[book  IV. 


ive,  not  only  with  foreign  countries  and  European  colonies, 
but  especially  with  the  Atlantic  ports  of  the  United  States,  and 
the  Western  States  upon  the  waters  of  the  Ohio.  During  the 
year  1802,  two  hundred  and  fifty  vessels  of  all  kinds  entered 
the  Mississippi  all  of  which  were  merchantmen,  except  eighteen 
Dublic  armed  vessels.  Of  the  former,  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty were  American,  and  ninety-seven  were  Spanish.*  The 
river  trade  from  the  Western  States  and  Upper  Louisiana  was 
conveyed  in  not  less  than  five  hundred  flat-boats  and  barges 
annually. 

The  annual  prqducts  of  agriculture  in  Louisiana  had  al- 
ready become  extensive  and  valuable,  consisting  chiefly  of 
sugar  and  cotton.  Both  these  products  had  increased  greatly 
within  the  last  few  years.  The  cotton  crop  of  1802  yielded 
twenty  thousand  bales,  each  weighing  about  three  hundred 
pounds ;  the  sugar  crop  of  the  same  year  yielded  five  thousand 
hogsheads  of  sugar,  weighing  each  about  one  thousand  pounds, 
and  five  thousand  casks  of  molasses,  each  containing  about  fifty 
gallons.  The  indigo  crop  had  diminished  gradually  to  about 
three  thousand  pounds.f 

Manufactures,  connected  with  the  agricultural  products  of 
the  province,  had  begun  to  assume  a  permanent  footing  near 
the  city  of  New  Orleans.  About  one  dozen  distilleries  for  the 
manufacture  of  taflia  from  molasses  were  in  operation,  produ- 
cing about  two  hundred  thousand  gallons  of  this  liquor  annually. 
One  sugar-refinery  in  the  city  likewise  produced  annually  near- 
ly two  hundred  thousand  pounds  of  loaf-sugar.  But  few  manu- 
factories of  importance  existed  in  other  branches  of  business. 

The  trade  of  New  Orleans  comprised  not  only  the  products 
of  Louisiana,  but  also  of  the  Western  States  and  territories. 
The  exports  of  1802,  including  the  western  products,  amounted 
to  forty  thousand  tons.  It  consisted  chiefly  of  flour,  pork,  salt 
beef,  tobacco,  cotton,  sugar,  molasses,  peltries,  naval  stores, 
and  lumber.  The  principal  articles  were  as  follows :  fifty  thou- 
sand barrels  of  flour,  three  thousand  barrels  of  salt  beef  and 
pork,  two  thousard  hogsheads  of  tobacco,  thirty-four  thousand 
bales  of  cotton,  four  thousand  hogsheads  of  sugar,  and  eight 
hundred  casks  of  molasses.  J 

The  whole  province  of  Louisiana  was  now  a  dependency  of 
the  United  States,  under  the  government  of  the  Federal  au- 

*  Martin,  vol.  ii.,  p.  834.  t  Idem,  p.  S31.  t  Idem,  p.  836. 


A.D.  1804.] 


VALLEY    OF   THE    MISSISSIPPI. 


567 


thorities,  until  provision  should  be  made  for  organizing  the 
population  into  a  regular  system  of  Republican  government, 
agreeably  to  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States. 
The  first  legislation  of  Congi-ess  on  this  subject  was  an  act  for 
the  organization  of  a  territorial  government  within  the  "  Ter- 
ritory of  Orleans."* 


*  See  vol.  ii.,  book  v.,  chap,  xv.,  for  the  continuation  of  the  history  of  Louisiana  under 
the  United  States,  the  organization  of  the  "  Territory  of  Orleans,"  and  the  admission 


of  the  "  State  of  Louitiana"  into  the  Union. 


END   OF   VOL.  I. 


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